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LIBRARY 

J  OF   THE 

Theological   Seminary, 

PRINCETON,    N.  J. 

BV  648  .C7  1844   cTl 
Coleman,  Lyman,  1796-1882. 
A  church  without  a  bishop 


6 


A    CHURCH    WITHOUT    A    BISHOP. 


THE 


APOSTOLICAL 


PRIMITIYE    CHUECH, 


POPULAR  IX  ITS  GOA'ERXMENT,  AXD  SIMPLE 
IN  ITS  WORSHIP. 


BY 

LYMAN   COLEMAN, 

AUTHOR    OF    "antiquities    OF    THE    CHRISTIAN    CHURCH." 


WITH  AX  IXTRODUCTOEY  E^SAT 

BY  _rf  * 

Dr.  AUGUSTUS  N 

PROFESSOR   OF   THEOLOGY   IN   THE   U:«fERSXTY    OF   BERLIN 


BOSTON: 

GOULD3    KENDALL    AND    LINCOLN, 

59  Washington  Street. 

1844. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1844, 

By  GOULD,  KENDALL  &  LINCOLN, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  Massachusetts. 


PRINTED  BY  W.  S.  DAMRELL, 
NO.    11   CORNHILL. 


PREFACE 


Man  is  said  to  be  a  creature  of  circumstances.  The  same 
may  be  said  of  a  book.  The  present,  at  least,  is  the  result  of  a 
circumstance  sufficiently  trivial.  In  the  year  1841,  the  author 
published,  with  no  sectarian  designs,  a  work  on  the  Antiquities 
of  the  Christian  Church,  as  a  compilation  from  various  German 
authors,  having  Augusti's  Compend  for  its  basis.  This  unpre- 
tending volume,  however,  aroused  the  suspicion  of  a  certain 
presbyter  in  Philadelphia,  bearing  the  initials  H.  W.  D.,  whose 
practised  eye  and  professional  skill  detected,  as  he  seemed  to 
think,  a  dangerous  infection  covertly  propagated  by  the  cir- 
culation of  the  book.  The  alarm  was  raised  ;  and  the  public 
warned  of  their  danger  by  a  review,  remarkable  for  the  spirit 
and  decency  with  which  it  was  written,  and,  most  of  all,  for 
its  random  assertions,  contradicting,  with  an  assurance  seldom 
equalled,  the  plainest  facts  of  ecclesiastical  history.  Finding 
this  review  every  where  circulated,  with  the  admirable  spirit 
in  which  it  was  written,  the  author  of  the  work  in  question 
ventured  upon  a  brief  reply.  This  gave  a  direction  to  his 
studies  which  he  had  never  contemplated ;  and  which,  with 
increasing  diligence  and  interest,  he  has  continued  to  pursue 
until  the  present  time.  The  result  of  these  inquiries  is, — the 
following  work. 


IV  PREFACE. 

For  this  new  direction  thus  given  to  his  studies,  and  for  all 
the  interesting  incidents  of  his  foreign  travel,  connected  with 
them,  the  author  has  to  offer  all  due  acknowledgments  to  his  old 
friend,  the  presbyter.  What  thanks  the  public  may  owe  him,  is 
yet  to  be  seen  in  the  judgment  which  they  shall  accord  to  the 
book  here  submitted  to  their  examination.  It  is,  however,  in  no 
sense  presented  in  answer  to  that  review.  Far  from  it.  The 
traveller  receives  his  direction  from  any  way-faring  man,  and  . 
goes  on  his  journey  regardless  of  his  informant;  so  the  author, 
taking  his  departure  from  an  incident  so  trifling,  has  pursued 
his  course  of  study,  with  an  aim  infinitely  higher  than  that  of 
replying  to  his  reviewer. 

The  object  of  the  author,  in  the  following  work,  is  to  commend 
to  the  consideration  of  the  reader  the  admirable  simplicity  of  the 
government  and  worship  of  the  primitive  church,  in  opposition 
to  the  polity  and  ceremonials  of  the  higher  forms  of  prelacy. 

In  the  prosecution  of  this  object,  he  has  sought,  under  the 
direction  of  the  best  guides,  to  go  to  the  original  sources,  and 
first  and  chiefly  to  draw  from  them.  On  the  constitution  and 
government  of  the  church  none  have  written  with  greater  ability, 
or  with  more  extensive  and  searching  erudition,  than  Mosheim, 
Planck,  Neander  and  Rothe.  These  have  been  his  principal 
reliance  ;  and  after  these,  a  great  variety  of  authors. 

If  the  reader  object,  that  the  authorities  cited  are  beyond  his 
reach,  or  are  recorded  in  a  language  to  him  unknown,  the  writer 
can  only  say,  that  he  has  endeavored  to  collect  the  best  authori- 
ties, wherever  they  might  be  found.  When  emb9died  in  the 
pages  of  the  work,  they  are  given  in  a  translation ;  aiid,  if  of 
special  importance,  the  original  is  inserted  in  the  margin,  for  the 
examination  of  the  scholar. 

The  work  has  been  prepared  with  an  anxious  endeavor  to  sus- 
tain the  positions  advanced,  by  references  sufliciently  copious,  per- 
tinent and  authoritative  ;  and  yet  to  guard  against  an  ostentatious 


PREFACE.  V 

affectation  in  the  accumulation  of  authorities.  Several  hundred 
have  indeed  been  entered  in  these  pages  ;  but  many  more,  that 
have  fallen  under  the  eye  of  the  writer,  have  been  rejected. 
Much  labor,  of  which  the  reader  probably  will  make  small 
account,  has  been  expended  in  an  endeavor  to  authenticate  those 
that  are  retained,  and  to  give  him  an  explicit  direction  to  them. 
The  work  has  been  written  with  studied  brevity,  and  an  uniform 
endeavor  to  make  it  at  once  concise,  yet  complete,  and  suggestive 
of  principles. 

In  the  prosecution  of  these  labors,  the  author  has  received  much 
encouragement  and  many  important  suggestions,  from  friends, 
whose  services  he  holds  in  grateful  remembrance.  For  such 
favors  he  is  particularly  indebted  to  Professor  Park,  of  the 
Theological  Seminary  in  this  place. 

Above  all,  it  is  the  author's  grateful  duty  publicly  to  express 
his  acknowledgments  to  Dr.  Neander,  not  only  for  his  Intro- 
ductory Essay,  but  for  the  uniform  kindness  of  his  counsels  in 
the  preparation  of  the  several  parts  of  this  work.  The  writer 
can  say  nothing  to  add  to  the  reputation  of  this  eminent  scholar, 
distinguished  alike  for  his  private  virtues,  his  public  services, 
and  his  vast  and  varied  erudition.  He  can  only  express  his 
obligations  for  the  advantages  derived  from  the  contribution 
and  the  counsels  of  this  great  historian,,  for  which  the  reader, 
in  common  with  the  writer  of  the  following  pages,  will  owe  his 
grateful  acknowledgments.  For  the  sentiments  here  expressed, 
however,  the  writer  is  alone  responsible. 

The  translation  of  the  Introduction  was  made  in  Berlin ;  and, 
after  a  careful  comparison  with  the  original  by  Dr.  Neander, 
received  his  unqualified  approbation.  It  is,  therefore,  to  be 
received  as  an  authentic  expression  of  his  sentiments  on  the 
several  topics  to  which  it  relates. 

In  the  preparation  of  this  work,  the  author  has  studiously 
1* 


VI  PREFACE. 

» 

sought  to  write  neither  as  a  Congregationalist,  nor  as  a  Presby- 
terian, exclusively ;  but  as  the  advocate  of  a  free  and  popular 
government  in  the  church  ;  and  of  simplicity  in  worship,  in 
harmony  with  the  free  spirit  of  the  Christian  religion.  It  is 
enough  for  the  author,  if  the  church  is  set  free  from  the  bondage 
of  a  prelatical  hierarchy;  and  trained,  by  simple  and  expressive 
rites,  to  worship  God  in  spirit,  and  in  truth.  We  heartily  wish 
indeed  for  all  true  churchmen  a  closer  conformity  to  the  primitive 
pattern  in  government  and  in  worship  ;  but  we  have  no  contro- 
versy with  them  on  these  points,  provided  we  may  still  be  united 
with  them  in  the  higher  principles  of  Christian  fellowship  and  love. 
The  writer  has  the  happiness  to  number  among  the  members  of 
that  communion  some  of  his  most  cherished  friends,  to  whose 
sentiments  he  would  be  sorry  to  do  violence  by  any  thing  that 
may  appear  in  these  pages. 

Indeed,  the  great  controversy  of  the  day  is  not  with  Protestant 
Episcopacy,  as  such  ;  it  is  rather  with  Formalism.  Formalism 
wherever  seen,  by  whatever  name  it  is  known, — this  is  the  great 
antagonist  principle  of  spiritual  Christianity.  Here  the  church 
is  broiight  to  a  crisis,  great  and  fearful  in  prospect,  and  moment- 
ous, for  good  or  for  evil,  in  its  final  results.  The  struggle  at 
issue  is  between .  a  spiritual  and  a  formal  religion ; — a  religion 
which  substitutes  the  outward  form  for  the  inward  spirit ; — a 
religion  that  exalts  sacraments,  ordinances  and  rites,  into  the 
place  of  Phrist  himself;  and  disguises,  under  the  covering  of 
imposing  ceremonials, "the  great  doctrines  of  the  cross  of  Christ. 

The  church  is  at  issue  with  this  religion  under  the  forms  of 
high  church  Prelacy,  '  Puseyism,'  and  Popery.  The  present 
struggle  began  in  England ;  but  when  or  where  or  how  it  will 
end,  who  can  tell?  Dr.  Pusey  himself  declares  that  on  the  issue 
of  it,  "hangs  the  destiny  of  the  church  of  England."  The 
Tractarians   all  avow, — "that    two  schemes  of   doctrine,   the 


PREFACE.  Vll 

Genevan  and  the  Catholic,  are  probably  for. the  last  time  strug- 
gling within  that  church."  But  the  conflict  is  not  confined  to 
England.  The  signs  of  the  times,  every  where  darkly  portentous, 
presage  a  similar  conflict  to  the  church  of  Christ  universally. 

In  this  eventful  crisis  we  are  urgently  pressed  to  a  renewed 
examination  of  the  apostolical  and  primitive  polity  of  the  church, 
in  government  and  in  worship ;  for  under  cover  of  these  the 
warfare  of  Formalism  is  now  waged.  These  are  the  prominent 
points,  both  of  attack  and  of  defence,  to  which  the  eye  of  the 
minister,  the  theological  student,  and  the  intelligent  Christian  of 
every  name,  should  be  strongly  turned.  Let  them  fall  back  on 
that  spiritual  Christianity  which  Christ  and  his  apostles  taught. 
Let  them,  in  doctrine,  in  discipline,  and  in  worship,  entrench 
themselves  within  the  strongholds  of  this  religion  ;  and  here,  in 
calm  reliance  upon  the  great  Captain  of  our  salvation,  let  them 
await  the  issue  of  the  contest. 

Hitherto  the  great  body  of  the  people  have  been  left  to  gather 
up  information  upon  this  branch  of  rehgious  knowledge  as  they 
could  ;  and  the  most  have  been  content  with  a  bhnd  acquiescence 
in  the  customs  of  their  own  church.  A  due  degree  of  knowledge 
on  this  subject  is  apparently  the  lot  of  very  few  of  our  leading 
men,  and  by  no  means  the  property  generally  of  clergymen  and 
theological  students. 

To  what  purpose  is  it  now,  just  to  follow  the  history  of  the 
church,  century  by  century,  through  the  recital  of  her  sufferings? 
The  times  are  changed,  and  a  corresponding  change  is  required  in 
the  study  of  ecclesiastical  history.  This  is  chiefly  important, 
for  existing  exigencies,  to  illustrate  the  usages,  the  rites,  the 
government  of  the  church,  and  the  perversion  of  these  to  promote 
the  ends  of  bigotry,  intolerance,  and  superstition.  Besides,  we 
have  seen,  for  some  years  past,  an  influence  stealing  silently 
upon  the  public  mind,  and  alluring  many  young  clergymen  from 
the   fold   of    their  fathers ;  —  an  influence   to   be   counteracted 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

by  a  better  understanding  of  our  own  government  and  worship. 
Bishop  Griswold  stated  in  1841,  that  of  "  two  hundred  and  eighty 
persons  ordained  by  him,  two  hundred  and  seven  came  from  other 
denominations."  And  another  bishop  says,  "From  the  most 
accurate  investigation  that  can  be  made,  I  am  led  to  believe,  that 
about  three  hundved  clergymen  and  licentiates  of  other  denomina- 
tions, have,  within  the  last  thirty  years,  sought  the  ministerial 
commission  from  the  hands  of  bishops  of  that  church  ;  and,  that  at 
least  two-thirds  were  not  originally,  by  education,  Episcopalians, 
but  have  come  from  other  folds."  These  facts  afford  matter 
for  serious  inquiry.  These  three  hundred  were  not  originally 
Episcopalians.  "Were  they,  "  iy  education,''^  any  thing  else? 
Would  they  have  strayed  away  in  such  numbers  from  their  own 
fold,  had  they  been  duly  instructed  in  the  principles  of  that  order 
to  which  they  originally  belonged  ? 

The  author  is  deeply  sensible  of  the  magnitude  and  difficulty 
of  the  work  which  he  has  undertaken ;  and  with  no  affected 
modesty,  avows  the  unfeigned  diffidence  with  which  he  commends 
it  to  the  public.  Would  it  were  worthier,  and  better  fitted  for 
the  great  end  proposed  by  it.  But  he  has  done  what  he  could, 
and  finds  his  reward  in  the  consciousness  of  having  labored 
honestly  in  a  righteous  cause,  and  in  the  hope  of  doing  something 
for  the  promotion  of  that  religious  system  which  shall  enable  the 
true  worshippers  to  worship  the  Father  in  spirit  and  in  truth. 
Such  a  religious  system,  he  believes  most  firmly  must  ever  find 
its  truest  expression  in  rites  of  worship  few  and  simple,  and  in  a 
government  administered  in  every  part  and  every  particular  by 
the  people ; — in  a  ritual  without  a  prayer-book ;  and  a  church 
without  a  bishop. 

Andover,  February,  1844. 


CONTENTS. 


Page. 
Introductory  Essay, -       -         13 


CHAPTER  I. 
Summary  View, ' 25 


CHAPTER  n. 

The  Primitive  Churches  forbied  after  the  model  of  the 
Jewish  Synagogue, --         39 


CHAPTER  m. 

Independence  of  the  Primitive  Churches,          -        -       -  47 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Elections  by  the  Churches, 54 

1.  Scriptural  argument,            -.--__-  55 

2.  Historical  argument,        --.-...  55 
Loss  of  the  right  of  suffrage,            -        -        -        -        -        -.70 

Remarks  on  election  by  the  people,     -----  80 


X  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 

Page. 

Discipline  by  the  Churches, 88 

Argument  from  Scripture,    -------  89 

From  the  early  fathers,    -        -        -        -        -        -        -        --95 

From  ecclesiastical  writers, -  106 

From  analogy, 108 

Mode  of  admission, -  113 

Usurpation  of  discipline  by  the  priesthood,      -        -        -        -  114 

Remarks  on  discipline  by  the  churches,       -        -        -        -  118 

CHAPTER  VI. 

Equality  and  Identity  of  Bishops  and  Presbyters,  -        -  124 

Scriptural  argument. 

Their  titles  used  interchangeably, 126 

Their  qualifications  required  to  be  the  same,           -        -        -  131 

Their  duties  the  same, -  133 

Presbyterian  ordination, 139 

James  not  bishop  of  Jerusalem, 146 

Timothy  not  bishop  of  Ephesus, 152 

Titus  not  bishop  of  Crete, 156 

The  angels  of  the  churches  in  the  Apocalypse  not  bishops,    -  157 

Historical  argument 

Presbyters  and  bishops  designated  by  the  same  names  in  the 

early  fathers,     ---- 162 

Presbyterian  ordination,  in  ancient  history,      -        -        -        -  176 

Validity  of  it  conceded  by  the  English  Reformers,       -        -  191 

Primitive  bishops  merely  parish  ministers,       -        -        -        -  197 

Parochial  Episcopacy,          -------  200 

Bearings  of  it  upon  prelacy,    -------  210 

Equality  of  bishops  and  presbyters  conceded,  down  to  the 

time  of  the  Reformation, 214 

Remarks  on  the  primitive  and  popular  government  of  the 

churches,              228 


CONTENTS.  XI 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Page. 

Rise  of  Episcopacy, 244 

Ascendency  of  the  churches  in  the  cities  over  those  in  the 

country, 245 

Reasons  for  this  ascendency, 247 

Superiority  of  bishops  in  cities  over  those  of  the  country,       -  252 

CHAPTER  Vm. 

The  Diocesan  Government, 265 

Means  of  its  development, 265 

Its  results, 272 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Metropolitan  Government,     ------  279 

Means  of  its  establishment,          -        -        -        -        -        -  280 

Results  of  the  system  upon  the  laity,       _        .        -        -        -  282 

Results  upon  the  clergy, 288 

State  of  religion  under  the  hierarchy,      -----  300 

CHAPTER  X. 

The  Patriarchal  and  the  Papal  Government,       -        -  307 

Patriarchal  government, -  307 

Papal  government, 309 

Remarks  on  ancient  prelacy, 313 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Prayers  of  the  Primitive  Church,     -----  319 
The  use  of  forms  of  prayer  opposed  to  the  spirit  of  the 

Christian  dispensation, 319 

Opposed  to  the  example  of  Christ  and  the  apostles,      -        -  321 

Unauthorized  by  the  instructions  of  Christ  and  the  apostles,   -  323 

The  Lord's  prayer  not  a  form, 327 

Forms  of  prayer  opposed  to  the  freedom  of  primitive  worship,  329 

Unknown  in  the  primitive  church, 333 

Remarks  on  liturgies, -  352 


Xll  CONTENTS,         • 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Page, 

Psalmody  of  the  Primitive  Church,      .--'.-  361 

Argument  from  reason,         ..-•..-  361 

"    •      from  analogy,  '       -        -     '  -        -        -        -        -  362 

"          from  Scripture,    -        -        -        -        -        -        -  363 

"         from  history,            -------  364 

Mode  of  singing, 368 

Changes  in  the  psalmody  of  the  church,          -        -        -        -  373 

Remarks  on  congregational  singing, 379 

CHAPTER  Xm.     • 

Homilies  in  the  Primitive  Church,       -        -        -        -        -  387 

Discourses  of  Christ  and  the  apostles,          -"       -        -        -  387 

Scriptural  exposition,       --------  393 

Homilies  in  the  Greek  church,     ------  396 

Homilies  in  the  Latin  church,          ------  401 

Episcopacy  an  incumbrance  to  the  preacher,       -        -        -  404 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  Benediction,         -- 408 

Origin  and  import  of  the  rite,       ------  408 

Mode  of  administering  it,        .----.-  414 

Superstitious  perversions  of  the  benediction,        -        -        -  415 

Scriptural  Index, 423 

Index  of  Authorities, -        -        -  424 

General  Index, --  428 


INTRODUCTION, 

BY 

Dr.  AUGUSTUS  NEANDER, 


PROFESSOR    OF    THEOLOGY     IN    THE    UNIVERSITY    OP    BERLIN,    CONSISTORIAL 
COUNSELLOR,    ETC. 


In  compliance  with  the  request  of  my  worthy  friend, 
the  Rev.  Mr.  Coleman,  I  am  happy  to  accompany  his 
proposed  work  on  the  Constitution  and  Worship  of  the 
apostolical  and  primitive  church  with  some  preliminary 
remarks.  I  regard  it  as  one  of  the  remarkable  signs 
of  the  times,  that  Christians,  separated  from  each  other 
by  land  and  by  sea,  by  language  and  government,  are 
becoming  more  closely  united  in  the  consciousness  that 
they  are  only  different  members  of  one  universal  church, 
grounded  and  built  on  the  rock  Christ  Jesus.  And  it  is  with 
the  hope  of  promoting  this  catholic  union,  that  I  gladly 
improve  this  opportunity  to  address  my  Christian  brethren 
beyond  the  waters  on  some  important  subjects  of  common 
interest  to  the  church  of  Christ. 

This  is  not  the  proper  place  to  express  in  detail,  and  to 

defend  my  own  views  upon  the  controverted  topics  which, 

as  I  have  reason  to  expect  from  the  respected  author,  will 

be   the   subject  of  an  extended,  thorough   and   impartial 

2 


14  INTRODUCTION. 

examination  in  his  proposed  work.  My  own  sentiments 
have  already  been  expressed,  in  a  work  which,  I  am 
happy  to '  learn,  is  offered  to  the  English  reader  in  a 
.translation  by  my  friend,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Ryland,  of 
Northampton,  in  England.  ^  I  have  only  time  and  space, 
in  this  place,  briefly  to  express  the  results  of  former 
inquiries,  which,  with  the  reasons  for  them,  have  on  other 
occasions  already  been  given  to  the  public. 

It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  keep  ever  in  view  the 
difference  between  the  economy  of  the  Old  Testament 
and  that  of  the  New.  The  neglect  of  this  has  given 
rise  to  the  grossest  errors,  and  to  divisions,,  by  which 
those  who  ought  to  be  united  together  in  the  bonds  of 
Christian  love,  have  been  sundered  from  each  other.  In 
the  Old  Testament,  every  thing  relating  to  the  kingdom 
of  God  was  estimated  by  outward  forms^  and  promoted 
by  specific  external  rites.  In  the  New,  every  thing  is 
made  to  depend  upon  what  is  internal  and  spiritual. 
Other  foundation,  as  the  apostle  Paul  has  said,  can  no 
man  lay  than  that  is  laid.  Upon  this  the  Christian 
church  at  first  was  grounded,  and  upon  this  alone,  in  all 
time  to  come,  must  it  be  reared  anew  and  compacted 
together.  Faith  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  the  Saviour  of 
the  world,  and  union  with  him,  a  participation  in  that 
salvation  which  cometh  through  him,  —  this  is  that 
inward  principle,  that  unchangeable  foundation,  on  which 

1  History  of  the  Planting  and  Training  of  the  Christian  Church,  by  the 
Apostles,  by  Dr.  A.  JNeander,  Ordinary  Professor  of  Theology,  in  the 
University  of  Berlin,  Consistorial  Counsellor  3  translated  from  the  third 
edition,  by  J.  E.  Ryland, 


INTRODUCTION.  15 

the  Christian  church  essentially  rests.  But  whenever, 
instead  of  making  the  existence  of  the  church  to  depend 
on  this,  inward  principle  alone,  the  necessity  of  some 
outward  form  is  asserted  as  an  indispensable  means  of 
grace,  we  readily  perceive  that  the  purity  of  its  char- 
acter is  impaired.  The  spirit  of  the  Old  Testament 
is  commingled  with  that  of  the  New.  Neither  Christ  nor 
the  apostles,  have  given  any  unchangeable  law  on  the 
subject.  Where  two  or  three  are  gathered  together  in 
my  name,  says  Christ,  there  am  I  in  the  midst  of- them. 
This  coming  together  in  his  name,  he  assures  us,  alone 
renders  the  assembly  well  pleasing  in  his  sight,  whatever 
be  the  different  forms  of  government  under  which  his 
people  meet. 

The  apostle  Paul  says,  indeed,  Eph.  4:  11,  that  Christ 
gave  to  the  church  certain  offices,,  through  which  he 
operated  with  his  Spirit,  and  its  attendants  gifts.  But 
assuredly  Paul  did  not  mean  to  say  that  Christ,  during 
his  abode  on  earth,  appointed  these  offices  in  the  church, 
or  authorized  the  form  of  government  that  was  necessarily 
connected  with  them.  All  the  offices  here  mentioned^ 
with  the  single  exception  of  that  of.  the  apostles,  were 
instituted  by  the  apostles  themselves,  after  our  Lord's 
ascension.  In  making  these  appointments,  they  acted,  as 
they  did  in  every  thing  else,  only  as  the  organs  of  Christ. 
Paul,  therefore,  very  justly  ascribes  to  Christ  himself  what 
was  done  by  the  apostles  in  this  instance  as  his  agents.  But 
the  apostles  themselves  have  given  no  law,  requiring  that 
any  such  form  of  government  as  is  indicated  in  this  passage 
should  be  perpetual.     Under  the  guidance  of  the  Spirit  of 


16  INTRODUCTION. 

God,  they  gave  the  church  this  particular  organization, 
which,  while  it  was  best  adapted  to  the  circumstances  and 
relations  of  the  church  at  that  time,  was  also  best  suited 
to  the  extension  of  the  churches  in  their  peculiar  con- 
dition, and  for  the  development  of  the  inward  principles  of 
their  communion.  But  forms  may  change  with  every 
change  of  circumstances.  Many  of  the  offices  mentioned 
in  that  passage,  either  were  entirely  unknown  at  a  later 
period,  or  existed  in  relations    one    to    another   entirely 


new. 


Whenever  at  a  later  period,  also,  any  form  of  church 
government  has  arisen  out  of  a  series  of  events  according 
to  the  direction  of  divine  providence,  and  is  organized  and 

2  One  peculiar  office^  that  of  the  prophets,  in  process  of  time  ceased 
in  the  church,  while  something  analogous  to  the  gift  of  prophecy  still 
remained  3  indeed  it  might  be  easily  shown  that  the  prophetic  office 
continued  at  that  early  period,  so  long  as  it  was  necessary  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  Christian  church,  under  its  peculiar  exigencies  and  rela- 
tions. Pastors  and  teachers  are  mentioned  in  this  passage,  in  the  same 
connection.  Their  office,  which  related  to  the  government  of  particular 
churches,  is  distinguished  from  that  of  those  who  had  been  mentioned 
before,  and  whose  immediate  object  was  the  extension  of  the  Christian 
church  in  general.  And  yet  a  distinction  is  also  made  between  these 
pastors  and  teachers,  inasmuch  as  the  qualifications  for  the  outward 
government  of  the  church,  xv^egvi^Gig,  were  different  from  those  which 
were  requisite  for  the  guidance  of  the  church  by  the  preaching  of  the 
word,  didaOicaXia.  The  first  belonged  especially  to  the  presbyters  or 
bishops  who  stood  at  the  head  of  the  organization  for  the  outward  govern- 
ment of  the  church.  Certain  it  is,  at  least,  that  they  did  not  all  possess 
the  gift  of  teaching  as  dlddaxaXoi,  teachers,  On  the  other  hand,  there 
may  have  been  persons  endowed  with  the  gift  of  teaching,  and  qualified 
thus  to  be  teachers,  who  still  belonged  not  to  the  class  of  presbyters. 
The  relations  of  these  offices  to  one  another  seem  not  to  have  been  the 
same  in  all  stages  of  the  development  of  the  apostolical  churches. 


INTRODUCTION.  17 

governed  with  regard  to  the  Lord's  Avill,  he  may  be  said, 
himself,  to  have  established  it,  and  to  operate  through  it, 
by  his  Spirit ;  without  which  nothing  pertaining  to  the 
church  can  prosper.  The  great  principles  which  are 
given  by  the  apostle,  in  the  passage  before  us,  for  the 
guidance  of  the  church,  —  these,  and  these  only,  remain 
unchangeably  the  same ;  because  they  are  immediately 
connected  with  the  nature  of  the  Christian  church,  as  a 
spiritual  community.  All  else  is  mutable.  The  form  of 
the  church  remained  not  the  same,  even  through  the  whole 
course  of  the  apostolic  age,  from  the  first  descent  of  the  Spirit, 
on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  to  the  death  of  John  the  apostle. 
Particular  forms  of  church  government  may  be  more  or 
less  suited  to  the  nature  of  the  Christian  church ;  and  we 
may  add,  no  one  is  absolutely  perfect,  neither  are  all  alike 
good  under  all  circumstances.  Would  then  that  all,  in 
their  strivings  after  forms  of  church  government,  would 
abide  fast  by  those  which  they  believe  to  be  best  adapted 
to  promote  'their  own  spiritual  edification,  and  which  they 
may  have  found,  by  experi^ce,  to  be  best  suited  to  the 
wants  of  their  own  Christian  community.  Only  let  them 
not  seek  to  impose  upon  all  Christians  any  one  form  as 
indispensably  necessary.  Only  let  them  remember,  that 
the  upbuilding  of  the  church  of  Christ  may  be  q^rried  on 
■under  other  forms  also,  and  that  the  same  Spirit,  on  which 
the  existence  of  the  church  depends,  can  as  truly  operate  in 
other  churches  as  in  their  own.  Would  that  Congi'ega- 
tionalists,  Presbyterians  and  Episcopalians,  Calvinists  and 
Lutherans,  would  abide  by  that  only  unchangeable  founda- 
2^ 


18  INTRODUCTION. 

tion  which  Christ  has  laid.  Would  that  on  such  a  founda- 
tion, which  no  man  can  lay,  they  would  meet  as  brethren  in 
Christ,  acknowledging  each  other  as  members  of  one 
catholic  church,  and  organs  of  the  same  Spirit,  co-operating 
together  for  the  promotion  of  the  great  ends  indicated  by 
the  apostle  Paul  in  Eph.  4:13  — 16. 

It  must,  indeed,  be  of  great  importance  to  examine  im- 
partially the  relations  of  the  apostolical  church,  for  at  this 
time  the  Spirit  of  Christ,  through  the  apostles,  wrought  in 
its  purevSt  influence,  by  which  means  the  mingling  of  foreign 
elements  was  prevented  in  the  development  of  this  system 
of  ecclesiastical  polity.  In  this  respect  we  must  all  admit 
that  the  apostolical  church  commends  itself  to  us  as  a 
model  of  church  government.  But,  in  the  first  place,  let 
us  remember,  agreeably  to  what  has  already  been  said, 
that  not  all  the  forms  of  church  government  which  were 
adapted  to  the  exigencies  of  the  church  at  this  early  period,, 
can  be  received  as  patterns  for  the  church  at  other  times ; 
neither  can  the  imitation  be  pressed  too  far.  Let  us 
remember,  that  it  is  only  that  same  Spirit  which  is  imparted 
to  us  through  the  intervention  of  the  apostles,  which,  at  all 
times,  and  under  all  possible  relations,  will  direct  to  the 
most  appropriate  and  most  efficient  form  of  government, 
if,  in  humility  and  sincerity,  we  surrender  ourselves  up  to 
its  teaching  and  guidance.  And  secondly,  let  us  remem- 
ber, that,  after  true  and  faithful  inquiry  on  these  subjects, 
men  may  honestly  differ  in  their  views  on  those  minor 
points,  without  interrupting  the  higher  communion  of  faith 
and  love. 


INTRODUCTION.  19 

In  the  apostolical  church  there  was  one  office  which 
bears  no  resemblance  to  any  other,  and  to  which  none  can 
be  made  to  conform.  This  is  the  office  of  the  apostles. 
They  stand  as  the  medium  of  communication  between 
Christ  and  the  whole  Christian  church,  to  transmit  his  word 
and  his  Spirit  through  all  ages.  In  this  respect  the  church 
must  ever  continue  to  acknowledge  her  dependence  upon 
them,  and  to  own  their  rightful  authority.  Their  authority 
and  power  can  be  delegated  to  none  other.  But  the 
service  which  the  apostles  themselves  sought  to  confer,  was 
to  transmit  to  men  the  word  and  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord, 
and,  by  this  means,  to  establish  independent  Christian 
communities.  These  communities,  when  once  established, 
they  refused  to  hold  in  a  state  of  slavish  dependence 
upon  themselves.  Their  object  was,  in  the  Spirit  of  the 
Lord,  to  make  the  churches  free,  and  independent  of  their 
guidance.  To  the  churches  their  language  was,  "  Ye  be- 
loved, ye  are  made  free,  be  ye  the  servants  of  no  man." 
The  churches  were  taught  to  govern  themselves.  All  the 
members  were  made  to  co-operate  together  as  organs  of 
one  Spirit,  in  connection  with  which  spiritual  gifts  were 
imparted  to  each  as  he  might  need.  Thus  they,  whose 
prerogative  it  was  to  rule  among  the  brethren,  demeaned 
themselves  as  the  servants  of  Christ  and  his  church. 
They  acted  in  the  name  of  Christ  and  his  church,  as  the 
organs  of  that  Spirit  with  which  all  were  inspired,  and  from 
which  they  derived  the  consciousness  of  their  mutual 
Christian  fellowship. 

The  brethren  chose  their  own  officers  from  among  them- 
selves.    Or  if,  in  the  first  organization  of  the  churches, 


20  INTRODUCTION. 

their  officers  Avere  appointed  by  the  apostles,  it  was  with 
the  approbation  of  the  members  of  the  same.  The  general 
concerns  of  the  church  were  managed  by  the  apostles  in 
connection  with  their  brethren  in  the  church,  to  whom  they 
also  addressed  their  epistles. 

The  earliest  constitution  of  the  church  was  modelled, 
for  the  most  part,  after  that  religious  community  with 
which  it  stood  in  closest  connection,  and  to  which  it  was 
most  assimilated,  the  Jewish  synagogue.  This,  however, 
was  so  modified  as  to  conform  to  the  nature  of  the  Christian 
community,  and  to  the  new  and  peculiar  spirit  with  which 
it  was  animated.  Like  the  synagogue,  the  church  was 
governed  by  an  associated  body  of  men  appointed  for  this 
purpose. 

The  name  of  preshijters,  which  was  appropriated  to  this 
body,  was  derived  from  the  Jewish  synagogue.  But  in  the 
Gentile  churches,  formed  by  the  apostle  Paul,  they  took 
the  name  of  hnlaaoTiov,  bishops,  a  term  more  significant 
of  their  office  in  the  language  generally  spoken  by  the 
members  of  these  churches.  The  name  of  preshyters 
denoted  the  dignity  of  their  office.  That  of  bishops,  on 
the  other  hand,  was  expressive  rather  of  the  nature  of 
their  office,  litidzonlLv  jiiv  iy.xlr]alav,  to  take  the  oversight 
of  the  church.  Most  certainly  no  other  distinction  origi- 
nally existed  between  them.  But,  in  process  of  time,  some 
one,  in  the  ordinary  course  of  events,  would  gradually 
obtain  the  pre-eminence  over  his  colleagues,  and  by  reason 
of  that  peculiar  oversight  which  he  exercised  over  the 
whole  community,  might  come  to  be  designated  by  the 
name  Inldnonog,  bishop,  which  was   originally  applied  to 


INTRODUCTION.  21 

them  all  indiscriminately.  The  constant  tumults  from 
within  and  from  without,  which  agitated  the  church  in 
the  time  of  the  apostles,  may  have  given  to  such  a  one 
opportunity  to  exercise  his  influence  the  more  efficient- 
ly; so  that,  at  such  a  time,  the  controlling  influence  of  one 
in  this  capacity  may  have  heen  very  salutary  to  the  church. 
This  change  in  the  relation  of  the  presbyters  to  each 
other  was  not  the  same  in  all  the  churches,  but  varied 
according  to  their  different  circumstances.  It  may  have 
been  as  early  as  the  latter  part  of  the  life  of  John,  when  he 
was  sole  survivor  of  the  other  apostles,  that  one,  as  president 
of  this  body  of  presbyters,  was  distinguished  by  the  name 
of  hniGHOTtog,  bishop.  There  is,  however,  no  evidence  that 
the  apostle  himself  introduced  this  change;  much  less, 
that  he  authorized  it  as  a  perpetual  ordinance  for  the 
future.  Such  an  ordinance  is  in  direct  opposition  to  the 
spirit  of  that  apostle.  ^ 

3  In  the  angels  of  the  churches  in  the  seven  epistles  of  the  Apocalypse,  I 
cannot  recognize  the  y^'^li  n'Sty  of  the  Jewish  synagogue  transferred  to  the 
Christian  church.  The  application  appears  to  me  to  be  altogether  arbitrary. 
J>for  again  can  I  discover  in  the  angel  of  the  church,  the  bishop,  addressed 
as  the  representative  of  this  body  of  believers.  How  much  must  w^e 
assume  as  already  proved,  which  yet  is  entirely  without  evidence,  in 
assigning  to  this  early  period  the  rise  of  such  a  monarchical  system  of 
government,  that  the  bishop  alone  can  be  put  in  the  place  of  the  whole 
church  ?  In  this  phraseology  1  recognize  rather  a  symbolical  application 
of  the  idea  of  guardian  angels,  similar  to  that  of  the  Ferver  of  the  Parsees, 
as  a  symbolical  representation  and  image  of  the  whole  church.  Such  a 
figurative  representation  corresponds  well  with  the  poetical  and  symboli- 
cal character  of  the  book  throughout.  It  is  also  expressly  said  that  the 
address  is  to  the  whole  body  of  the  churches. 


22  INTRODUCTION. 

This  change  in  the  mode  of  administering  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  church,  resulting  from  peculiar  circum- 
stances, may  have  been  introduced  as  a  salutary  expedient, 
without  implying  any  departure  from  the  purity  of  the  Chris- 
tian spirit.  When,  however,  the  doctrine  is,  as  it  gradually 
gained  currency  in  the  third  century,  —  that  the  bishops 
are,  by  divine  right,  the  head  of  the  church,  and  invested 
with  the  government  of  the  same,  that  they  are  the  suc- 
cessors of  the  apostles,  and  by  this  succession  inherit 
apostolical  authority,  that  they  are  the  medium  through 
which,  in  consequence  of  that  ordination  which  they  have 
received,  merely  in  an  outward  manner,  the  Holy  Ghost, 
in  all  time  to  come,  must  be  transmitted  to  the  church  — 
when  this  becomes  the  doctrine  of  the  church,  we  cer- 
tainly must  perceive,  in  these  assumptions,  a  strong  corrup- 
tion of  the  purity  of  the  Christian  system.  It  is  a  carnal 
perversion  of  the  true  idea  of  the  Christian  church.  It  is 
falling  back  into  the  spirit  of  the  Jewish  religion.  Instead 
of  the  Christian  idea  of  a  church,  based  on  inward  princi- 
ples of  communion,  and  extending  itself  by "  means  of 
these,  it  presents  us  with  the  image  of  one,  like  that  under 
the  Old  Testament,  resting  in  outward  ordinances,  and,  by 
external  rites,  seeking  to  promote  the  propagation  of  the 
kingdom  of  God.  This  entire  perversion  of  the  original 
view  of  the  Christian  church  was  itself  the  origin  of  the 
whole  system  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion, —  the  germ 
from  which  sprung  the  popery  of  the  dark  ages. 

We  hold,  indeed,  no  controversy  with  that  class  of 
Episcopalians  who  adhere  to  the  Episcopal  system  above 


INTRODUCTION.  23 

mentioneJ  as  well  adapted,  in  their  opinion,  to  the  exigen- 
cies of  their  church.  "We  would  live. in  harmony  with 
them,  notwithstanding  their  mistaken  views  of  the  true 
■form  of  the  church,  provided  they  denounce  not  other  systems 
of  church  government.  But  the  doctrine  of  the  absolute 
necessity  of  the  Episcopal  as  the  only  valid  form  of  gov- 
ernment, and  of  the  Episcopal  succession  of  bishops  above 
mentioned,  in  order  to  a  participation  in  the  gifts  of  the 
Spirit,  all  this  we  must  regard  as  something  foreign  to 
the  true  idea  of  the  Christian  church.  It  is  in  direct  con- 
flict with  the  spirit  of  protestantism ;  and  is  the  origin, 
not  of  the  true  Catholicism  of  the  apostles,  but  of  that 
of  the  Romish  church.  When,  therefore.  Episcopalians 
disown,  as  essentially  deficient  in  their  ecclesiastical  or- 
ganization, other  protestant  churches  which  evidently  have 
the  spirit  of  Christ,  it  only  remains  for  us  to  protest,  in  the 
strongest  terms,  against  their  setting  up  such  a  standard 
of  perfection  for  the  Christian  church.  Far  be  it  from  us, 
.who  began  with  Luther  in  the  spirit,  that  we  should  now 
desire  to  be  made  perfect  by  the  flesh.     Gal.  3  :  3. 

Dr.  a.  Neander. 
•   Berlin,  April  28tk,  1843. 


THE   PllDIITIVE   CHUUCH 


CHAPTER  I. 


SUMMARY    VIEW. 


The  Christian  churcli  derived  its  earliest  form  from  a 
small  society  of  believers,  who  were  united  together  by  no 
law  but  that  of  the  love  they  felt  to  one  another,  and  to  their 
common  Lord.i  After  his  ascension,  they  continued  to 
meet,  in  singleness  of  heart,  for  the  mutual  interchange  of 
sympathy  and  love,  and  for  the  worship  of  their  Lord  and 
Master.  The  government  which,  in  process  of  time,  the 
fraternity  adopted  for  themselves,  was  free  and  volun- 
tary. Both  their  rites  of  worship  and  rules  of  govern- 
ment were  few  and  simple.  Each  individual  church 
possessed  the  rights  and  powers  inherent  in  an  independent 
popular  assembly;  or,  to  adopt  the  language  of  another, 
"  The  right  to  enact  their  laws,  and  the  entire  government 
of  the  churchy, was  vested.Jn  each  individual  association  of 
which  the  church  was  composed,  and  was  exercised  by  the 
members  of  the  same,  in  connection  with  their  overseers 
and  teachers,  and,  when  the  apostles  were  present,  in  com- 

i  Neander's  Apost.  Kirch.,  Vol.  I,  c.  1.  Rothe,  Anfange  der  Christ.  Kirch., 
I,  p.  141-2. 


26  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

mon  also  with  them."^  This  general  exposition  of  the 
government  of  the  primitive  church,  it  will  be  our  business 
to  illustrate  and  defend  in  the  following  pages.  The 
course  of  our  inquiries  will  lead  us  to  examine  the  popular 
government  of  the  apostolical  and  primitive  church,  to  trace 
the  gradual  extinction  of  this  form  of  government,  and  the 
rise  of  the  Episcopal  system;  and  to  consider  the  sirnplicity 
of  primitive  worship  in  its  several  parts. 

The  arguments  for  the  popular  government  of  the  apos- 
tolical and  primitive  church  may  be  arranged  under  the 
following  heads. 

1.  It  harmonizes  with  the  primitive  simplicity  of  all 
forms  of  government. 

The  multiplication  of  offices,  the  adjustment  of  the  gra- 
dations of  rank  and  power,  and'  a  complicated  system  of 
rites  and  forms,  is  the  work  of  time.  At  first,  the  rules  of 
government,  however  administered,  are  few  and  simple. 
The  early  Christians,  especially,  associating  together  in 
the  confidence  of  mutual  love,  and  uniting  in  sincerity  of 
heart  for  the  worship  of  God,  may  fairly  be  presumed  to 
have  had  only  a  few  conventional  rules  for  the  regulation 
of  their  fraternity. 

2.  It  is,  perhaps,  the  only  form  of  government  which  the 
church  could  safely  have  formed,  at  that  time,  under  the 
Roman  government. 

Without  any  established  religion,  this  government  tole- 
rated, indeed,  different  religious  sects,  and  might  have 
extended  the  same  indulgence  to  the  primitive  Christians. 
But  it  looked  with  suspicion  upon  every  organization  of 
party  or  sect,  as  treason  against  the  state,  and  punished 
with  cruel  jealousy   every   indication    of  a   confederacy 

2  Cited  in  Allgemeine  Kirch.  Zeitung,  1833.    No.  103. 


SUMMARY    VIEW.  27 

within  the  empire.  The  charge  of  treasonable  intentions 
prevailed  with  the  Roman  governor  against  our  Lord. 
And,  by  another  Roman  governor,  a  bloody  persecution 
was  soon  commenced,  under  Trajan,  A.  D.  103,  against 
the  church,  on  the  suspicion  that  it  might  be  a  secret 
society,  formed  for  seditious  purposes.  Under  these  cir- 
cumstances, it  is  difficult  to  conceive  how  a  diocesan 
consolidation  of  the  churches  ^sstablished  by  the  apostles, 
could  have  been  effected  without  bringing  down  upon 
them  the  vengeance  of  the  Roman  government,  to  crush, 
at  the  outset,  a  coalition  to  them  so  obnoxious.  Their 
apparently  harmless  and  informal  assemblies,  and  the  total 
absence  of  all  dependence  or  connection,  one  with  another, 
was,  according  to  Planck  and  many  others,  the  means  of 
saving  the  early  churches  so  long  and  so  extensively  from 
the  exterminating  sword  of  Roman  jealousy.^ 

Crevit  occulto,  velut  arbor,  aevo. 

3.  Such  an  organization  must  have  been  formed,  it 
would  seem,  in  order  to  unite  the  discordant  parties  in  the 
primitive  churches. 

Here  was  the  Jew,  the  Greek,  the  Roman,  and  Barbari- 
ans of  every  form  .of  superstition ;  converts,  indeed,  to  faith 
in  Christ,  but  with -all  their  partialities  and  prejudices  still. 
What  but  a  voluntary  principle,  guaranteeing  to  all  the 
freedom  of  a  popular  assembly,  would  unite  these  parties  in 
one  fraternity  ?  Our  Lord  himself  employed  no  artificial 
bands  to  bind  his  followers  together  in  a  permanent  body, 
and  they  were- alienated  from  him  upon  the  slightest  offence. 
The  apostles  had  still  less  to  bind  their  adherents  firmly  to 
themselves.  It  required  all  their  wisdom  and  address  to 
reconcile  the  discordant  prejudices  of  their  converts,  and 
unite  them  in  harmonious  fellowship  one  with  another. 

3  Gesellschafts-Verfass,  I,  pp.  40 — 50. 


28  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

This  difficulty  met  the  apostles  at  the  outset  of  their  min- 
istry, in  the  murmuring  of  the  Greeks  against  the  Jews, 
that  their  widows  were  neglected  in  the  daily  ministration. 
It  was  a  continual  trial,  and  beset  them  on  every  side, 
from  the  churches  which  they  had  formed.  Under  such 
circumstances,  they  assumed  not  the  responsibility  of 
settling  these  controversies  by  apostolical  or  Episcopal 
authority;  but  by  their  counsel  and  persuasion,  they  sought 
to  obviate  the  prejudices  of  their  brethren.  Every  thing 
relating  to  the  interests  of  each  church  they  left  to  be 
publicly  discussed,  and  decided  by  mutual  consent.  In 
this  manner  they  quieted  these  complaints  of  the  Greeks 
respecting  the  distribution  of  alms.  Acts  6 :  1 — 8.  And 
such,  no  doubt,  became  their  settled  policy  in  their  care  of 
the  churches.  Even  the  apostles  were  not  exempt  from 
these  infirmities  and  misunderstandings,  and  might  have 
found  no  small  difficulty  in  arranging  among  themselves  a 
more  artificial  and  complicated  system  of  church  govern- 
ment.4 

4.  The  same  is  inferred  from  the  existence  of  popular 
rights  and  privileges  in  the  early  periods  of  the  Christian 
church. 

It  is  known  to  every  one  at  all  acquainted  with  the  early 
history  of  the  church,  that  from  the  second  century  down 
to  the  final  triumph  of  papacy,  there  was  a  strong  and 
increasing  tendency  to  raise  and  extend  the  authority  of 
the  clergy,  and  to  curtail  and  depress  that  of  the  people. 
The  fact  is  undeniable.  But  how  shall  it  be  explained  ? 
If  a  prelatical  form  of  organization  was  divinely  appointed 
by  Christ  and  his  apostles,  vesting  in  the  clergy  alone  the 

■*  Shroeter  und  Klein,  Far  Christenthum  Oppositionschrift,  I,  p.  567. 
Siegel,  Handbuch,  2, 455-6.  Arnold's  Wahre-Abbildung  der  Ersten  Chris- 
ten; B.  II,  c.  5,  seq.  Schoene,  Geschichtsforschungen  d.  Kirch.  Gebrauch, 
1,  p.  234^. 


SUMMARY    VIEW.  29 

right  of  government,  and  if  the  tide  of  clerical  encroach- 
ment ran  so  steadily  and  strongly  from  the  first,  then  it  is 
inconceivable,  how,  under  these  circumstances,  the  doctrine 
of  popular  rights  should  ever  have  obtained  such  a  footing 
in  the  church,  as  to  maintain  itself  for  centuries  against 
the  influences,  so  depressing,  of  a  jealous  and  oppressive 
hierarchy.  Had  the  doctrine  of  the  popular  rights  been 
totally  lost  in  the  second  and  third  centuries,  this  would  by 
no  means  warrant  the  inference  that  such  rights  were 
unknown  in  the  days  of  the  apostles.  They  might  have 
all  been  swept  away  by  the  irresistible  tide  of  clerical 
influence  and  authority.  But  they  were  not  lost.  They 
were  recognized  even  in  the  fourth  and  fifth  centuries,  and 
long  after  the  hierarchy  was  established  in  connection  with 
the  state,  and  its  authority  enforced  by  the  imperial  power 
of  Constantino  and  his  successors.  Were  not  the  rights  of 
the  people  established  by  Christ  and  the  apostles  ?  Else 
how  could  they  ever  have  come  in  and  maintained  their 
ground  against  the  current  that  continually  ran  with  such 
strength  in  the  opposite  direction? 

5.  A  popular  form  of  church  government  harmonizes 
with  the  spirit,  the  instructions,  and  the  example  of  Christ. 

[a)  With  his  spirit.  He  was  of  a  meek  and  lowly 
mind,  unostentatious  and  unassuming.  He  shrank  from 
the  demonstrations  of  power,  and  refused  the  titles  and 
honors  that,  at  times,  were  pressed  upon  his  acceptance. 
With  such  a  spirit,  that  religious  system  must  be  congenial, 
which,  without  any  parade  of  titles  and  of  rank,  has  few 
offices,  and  little  to  excite  the  pride  or  tempt  the  ambition 
of  man. 

(b)  With  his  instructioTis.  Ye  know  that  the  princes 
of  the  Gentiles  exercise  dominion  over  them,  and  they  that 
.are  great  exercise  authority  upon  them,  but  it  shall  not  be 

so  among  you ;   but  whosoever  will  be  great  among  you, 
8* 


30  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

let  him  be  your  minister;  and  whosoever  will  be  chief 
among  you,  let  him  be  your  servant ;  even  as  the  Son  of 
man  came,  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister,  and 
to  give  his  life  a  ransom  for  many.  Matt.  20 :  25 — 28. 
Comp.  Mark  10 :  42—45. 

(c)  With  his  example.  This  was  in  perfect  coinci- 
dence with  his  instructions,  and  a  striking  illustration  of 
his  spirit.  His  life  was  a  pattern  of  humility,  of  untiring, 
unostentatious  benevolence.  He  condescended  to  the  con- 
dition of  all,  and,  as  one  of  the  latest  and  most  expressive 
acts  of  his  life,  washed  his  disciples'  feet,  giving  them  an 
example  for  their  imitation,  as  the  servants  of  all  men. 
Has  such  a  spirit  its  just  expression  in  a  hierarchy,  which 
has  often  dishonored  the  religion  of  Christ  by  the  display 
of  princely  pomp,  and  the  assumption  of  regal  and  imperial 
power  ?  5 

6.  It  equally  accords  with  the  spirit,  the  instructions,  and 
the  example  of  the  apostles. 

{a)  With  their  spirit.  They  had  renounced  their  hopes 
of  aggrandizement  in  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  and  had 
imbibed  much  of  his  spirit.  The  world  took  knowledge  of 
them  that  they  had  been  with  Jesus,  and  had  learned  of  him, 
who  was  meek  and  lowly  of  heart.  They  account  them- 
selves the  least  of  all  saints,  and  the  servants  of  all.  This 
spirit,  it  would  seem,  must  be  foreign  and  far  from  the. 
distinctions  of  rank  and  of  office,  as  well  as  from  the 
authority  and  power  which  are  inherent  in  every  form  of 
the  Episcopal  system. 

{b)  With  their  instructions.  These  were  in  coinci- 
dence with  those  of  their  Master.  The  servant  of  the 
Lord  must  not  strive,  but  be  gentle  unto  all  men ;    apt  to 

5  The  French  infidels  have  an  expression  relating  to  our  Saviour,  which, 
though  impious  and  profane;Clearly  indicates  the  nature  of  his  instructions 
and  example, — "Jesus  Christ,  the  great  Democrat." 


SUMMARY   VIEW.  31 

teach;  patient  (under  injuries);  in  meekness  instructing 
those  that  oppose  themselves.  2  Tim.  2:  24 — 25.  Who 
then  is  Paul,  and  who  is- Apollos,  but  ministers,  by  whom 
ye  believed,  even  as  the  Lord  gave  to  every  man  ?  1  Cor. 
3:  5.  They  disowned  personal  authority  over  the. church, 
verses  14,  15;  and  instructed  the  elders  not  to  lord  it  over 
God's  heritage,  but  to  be  examples  to  the  flock.  1  Pet.  5:  3. 
If,  in  the  discharge  of  his  ministry,  one  has  occasion  to 
reprove  sin  in  an  elder,  this  he  is. charged,  before  God  and 
the  elect  angels,  to  do  with  all  circumspection,  without 
prejudice  or  partiality.     1  Tim.  5 :  21. 

(c)  With  their  example.  This  is  the  best  comment 
upon  their  instructions,  and  the  clearest  indication  of  that 
organization  which  the  church  received  at  their  hands. 
They  exercised,  indeed,  a  controlling  influence  over  the 
several  churches  which  they  established,  just  as  an  Ameri- 
can missionary  does  in  organizing  •  his  Christian  converts 
into  a  church,  while  he  constitutes  them  a  popular  assem- 
bly under  a  Congregational  or  Presbyterian  form.  In  like 
manner,  it  is  observable,  that  the  apostles  studiously 
declined  the  exercise  of  prelatical  or  Episcopal  authority. ^ 
But  the  control  which  they  at  first  exercised  in  managing 
the  affairs  of  the  church  was  no  part  of  their  office.  It  was 
only  a  temporary  expedient,  resulting  from  the  necessity 
of  the  case.  Accordingly,  they  carefully  disclaimed  the 
official  exercise  of  all  clerical  authority,  and.  as  soon  as  the 
circumstances  of  the  churches  would  admit,. they  submitted 
to  each  the  administration  of  its  own  government.  In 
this  manner,  they  gave  to  the  churches  the  character  of 
voluntary,  deliberative  assemblies,  invested,  with  the  rights 


6  Planck,  Gesellschafts-verfass.,  1,  p.  39.  Spittlers,  Can.  Recht,  c.  1,  §  3. 
Pertsch,  Can.  Recht,  c.  1,  §  5-8.  Siegel,  Kirchliche  Verfassungsformen, 
in  Haiidbuch;  II,  p.  453.  Pertsch,  Kirch.,  Hist.,  Vol.  I.  pp.  156— 170,  3G2 
—370. 


32  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

and  privileges,  of  religious  liberty.  This  important  fact  is 
manifest  in  the  following  particulars. 

(a)  They  addressed  the  members  of  the  church  as 
brethren  and  sisters,  and  fellow-laborers.  I  would  not  have 
you  ignorant,  brethren,  that  oftentimes,  I  purposed  to  come 
unto  you.  Rom.  1 :  13.  And  I,  brethren,  when  I  came 
unto  you,  came  not  in  excellency  of  speech.  1  Cor.  2  :  1. 
I  commend  unto  you  Phebe,  our  sister.  Rom.  16:  1. 
The  same  familiar,  affectionate  style  of  address  runs 
through  all  the  epistles,  showing  in  what  consideration  the 
apostles  held  all  the  members  of  the  church.  "  The  apos- 
tles severally  were  very  far  from  placing  themselves  in  a 
relation  that  bore  any  analogy  to  a  mediating  priesthood. 
In  this  respect  they  always  placed  themselves  on  a  footing 
of  equality.  If  Paul  assured  them  of  his  intercessory 
prayers  for  them,  he  in  return  requested  their  prayers  for 
himself.  "7 

((?)  The  apostles  remonstrate  with  the  church  as  with 
brethren,  instead  of  rebuking  them  authoritatively.  Now 
I  beseech  you,  brethren,  by  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  that  ye  all  speak  the  same  thing,  and  that  there  be 
no  divisions  among  you.  1  Cor.  1:  10.  Furthermore, 
then,  we  beseech  you,  brethren,  and  exhort  you.  1  Thess. 
4:  1.  IVIy  brethren,  have  not  the  faith  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  the  Lord  of  glory,  with  respect  of  persons.  James 
2 :  1.  They  spoke  not  by  commandment,  but  in  the  lan- 
guage of  mutual  counsellors.     1  Cor.  11:   13 — 16. ^ 

(7)  They  treated  with  the  church  as  an  independent 
body,  competent  to  judge  "and  act  for  themselves.  They 
appealed  to  their  judgment  personally.  1  Cor.  11:  13 — 16. 
1  Thess.  5;  21.     They  reported  their  own  doings  to  the 

7  Neander,  Apostol.  Kirch.;  1,  p.  161,  3d  edit. ;  and  in  the  sequel  much 
more  to  the  same  effect. 

8  Comp.  Socrates,  Hist.  Eccl.,  Lib,  5,  c.  22. 


SUMMARY    VIEW.  33 

church,  as  if  amenable  to  that  body,  Acts  11:  1 — 18.  14: 
26,  27,  and  exhorted  the  brethren  to  hold  their  teachers 
under  their  watch  and  discipline.     Rom.  16  :   17. 

(d)  They  exhorted  the  churches  to  deeds  of  charity 
and  benevolence ;  but  submitted  to  each  the  disposal  of  his 
goods  and  his  charities.  Acts  5:4.  11:  29,  30,  «Scc.  1 
Cor.  16 :   1,  seq.     2  Cor.  9,  1,  seq. 

{a)  They  addressed  their  epistles,  not  to  the  pastors  of 
the  churches,  but  to  the  churches,  or  to  the  churches  and 
pastors  collectively,  giving  precedence  even  in  some 
instances  to  the  church.  Phil.  1:  1.  Even  the  epistles 
which  treat  of  controverted  ecclesiastical  matters,  are 
addressed,  not  to  the  bishops  and  presbyters,  but  to  the 
whole  body  of  believers,  indicating  that  the  decision  belonged 
to  them.  Had  it  been  otherwise,  would  not  such  instruc- 
tions and  advice  have  been  given  to  the  ministers  of  the 
churches  ?  ^ 

(t)  They  recognize  the  right  of  the  church  to  send  out 
their  own  religious  teachers  and  messengers,  as  they  might 
have  occasion.  Acts.  11:  19  —  24;  15:  32,  33.  2  Cor. 
8  :  23.  Phil.  2  :  25.  1  Cor.  16  :  3,  4.  These  deputations, 
and  the  power  of  sending  them,  indicate  the  independent 
authority  of  the  church. 

(??)  They  united  with  the  church  in  mutual  consultation 
upon  doubtful  questions.  The  brethren  took  part  in  the 
dissension  with  Peter,  for  having  preached  unto  the  Gen- 
tiles. Acts  11  :  1  —  18.  The  apostles  united  with  them 
in  the  discussion  of  the  question  respecting  circumcision, 
which  was  submitted  to  them  by  the  delegation  from 
Antioch,  and  the  result  was  published  in  the  name  of  the 
apostles  and  the  brethren,  jointly.     Acts  15  :   1,  seq. 

((9)  They  submitted  to  the  church  the  settlement  of 
their   own   difficulties.      The    appointment   of  the    seven 

9  Comp.  Ep.  Clem,  and  Euseb.,  h.  e.  Lib.  4,  c.  15.    Lib.  b,  c.  \,  c.  24. 


34  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

deacons,  to  obviate  the  murmurs  of  the  Greeks,  was  made 
at  the  suggestion  of  the  apostles,  but  the  election  was 
wholly  the  act  of  the  church.  Acts  6 :  1  —  6.  The 
apostles  refused  any  authoritative  arbitration  in  the  case, 
and  required  them  to  choose  arbitrators  among  themselves 
to  settle  their  own  litigations.     1  Cor.  6  :   1. 

{i)  They  entrusted  the  church,  also,  with  the  important 
right  of  electing  their  own  officers.  As  in  the  case  of 
the  seven  deacons,  which  we  have  just  stated ;  the  apos- 
tles refused  even  the  responsibility  of  supplying,  in  their 
own  number,  the  place  of  the  traitor  Judas,  but  submitted 
the  choice  to  the  assembly  of  the  disciples.  Acts  1  : 
15,  seq.  In  this  connection  should  the  appointment  of 
elders.  Acts,  14 :  23,  also  be  mentioned,  as  may  hereafter 
appear. 

{y^)  The  apostles  submitted  to  the  church  the  discipline 
of  its  members ;  as  in  the  case  of  the  incestuous  person, 
who  was  excommunicated  and  afterwards  restored  to  the 
church  by  that  body.  "  The  relations  of  presbyters  to  the 
church  was  not  that  of  rulers  with  monarchical  powers, 
but  of  the  officers  of  an  ecclesiastical  republic.  In  all 
things  they  were  to  act  in  connection  with  the  church, 
and  to  perform  their  duties  as  the  servants,  and  not  the 
lords  of  the  church.  The  apostles  recognized  the  same 
relation.  They  addressed  their  epistles,  not  to  the  officers 
of  the  church,  but  to  the  whole  hodj,  when  treating  not 
merely  of  doctrinal  points,  but  of  moral  duties  and  of 
church  discipline.  The  apostle  Paul,  when  speaking  of 
the  excommunication  of  the  incestuous  person  at  Corinth, 
regards  himself  as  united  in  spirit  with  the  whole 
church,  1  Cor.  5:4;  thus  indicating  the  principle,  that  their 
co-operation  was  required  in  all  such  cases  of  general 
interest."  10 

lojNeander's  Allgem.  Gesch.,I;  p.  324,  2d  ed. 


SUMMARY    VIEW.  35 

The  churches,  therefore,  which  were  planted  by  the 
«apostles,  were  under  their  sanction  organized  as  inde- 
pendent popular  assemblies,  with  power  to  elect  officers, 
adopt  rules,  administer  discipline,  and  to  do  all  those  acts 
which  belong  to  such  deliberative  bodies. 

7.  The  popular  government  of  the  primitive  church 
is  apparent  from  its  analogy  to  the  Jewish  synagogue. 

This  and  each  of  the  following  articles,  under  this  head, 
will  be  the  subjects  of  consideration  in  another  place. 
They  are  assumed  as  so  many  separate  heads  of  argument- 
ation, so  far  as  they  may  appear  to  be  founded  in  truth. 
Comp.  Chap.  II. 

8.  The  primitive  churches  were  severally  independent 
bodies,  in  Christian  fellowship,  but  having  no  confederate 
relations  one  toward  another. 

"  The  power  of  enacting  laws,"  says  Mosheim,  "  of 
appointing  teachers  and  ministers,  and  of  determining  con- 
troversies, was  lodged  in  the  people  at  large  ;  nor  did  the- 
apostles,  though  invested  •  with  divine  authority,  either 
resolve  or  sanction  any  thing  whatever,  without  the 
knowledge  and  concurrence  of  the  general  body  of  Chris- 
tians, of  which  the  church  was  composed." ^  Comp. 
Chap.  III. 

9.  These  churches  each  enjoyed  the  inherent  right 
of  every  independent  body,  that  of  choosing  their  own 
officers. 

This  right,  which,  as  we  have  seen,  belonged  to  the  apos- 
tolical churches,  was  perpetuated  in  the  churches  through 
the  ages  immediately  following.     Comp.  Chap.  IV. 

11  De  Rebus  Christ.,  &c.,  ^  1, 37.  To  the  same  effect,  also,  is  the  authority 
of  JNeander,  Apost.  Kirch.,  pp.  1,  161,  201,  214,  3d  cd. 


36  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

10.  As  in  tlie  apostolical,  so  in  the  primitive  churches, 
the  right  of  discipline  was  vested,  not  in  the  clergy,  but  in 
each  church  collectively.^^ 

Even  the  officers  of  the  church  were  subject  to  the 
authority  of  the  same.  Clement  recognizes  this  authority 
in  his  epistle  to  the  Corinthians. i3     Comp.  Chap.  V. 

11.  The  appropriate  officers  were  two-fold,  deacons, 
and  pastors.  These  pastors  were  denominated  indiscrim- 
inately bishops,  overseers,  and  elders,  presbyters,  and  were 
at  first  identical  and  equal.     Comp.  Chap.  VI. 

The  government  of  the  church  was  the  peculiar  office 
of  such  overseers,  the  bishops  or  presbyters.  It  was  their 
business  to  watch  over  the  general  order,  —  to  maintain  the 
purity  of  the  Christian  doctrine  and  of  Christian  practice,  — 
to  guard  against  abuses, —  to  admonish  the  faulty, —  and  to 
guide  the  public  deliberations;  as  appears  from  the  passages 
in  the  New  Testament  where  their  functions  are  described. 
But  their  government  by  no  means  excluded  the  participa- 
tion of  the  whole  church  in  the  management  of  their  com- 
mon concerns,  as  may  be  inferred  from  what  we  have 
already  remarked  respecting  the  nature  of  Christian  com- 
munion, and  is  also  evident  from  many  individual  examples 
in  the  apostolical  churches.  The  whole  church  at  Jerusa- 
lem took  part  in  the  deliberations  respecting  the  relation  of 
the  Jewish  and  Gentile  Christians  to  each  other,  and  the 
epistle  drawn  up  after  these  deliberations  was  likewise  in 

12  Primo  omnibus  ecclesiae  membris  jus  eligendi  pastores  et  diaconos 
erat.  Communicatio  erat  quaedam  inter  varies  coetus  christianos  vel 
ecclesias ;  literae  quas  altera  acceperat  alteri  iegendae  mittebantur.  Pe- 
cunias  ad  pauperes  sublevandos  ecclesia  ecclesiae  donabat.  De  rebus  fidei 
disciplinae  jam  apostoli  deliberaverunt.  Quaequae  ecclesia  exercebat 
jus  excommunicandi  eos  qui  doctrinae  et  vitae  christianae  renunciaverant, 
eosque  recipiendi  quorum  poenitentia  et  mentis  mutatio  constabat.  Sic 
prima  christianorum  ecclesia  libertate,  concordia,  sanctitate  floruit. 
Sack  Comment,  ad  Theol.  Inst.,  p.  141. 

13  Epist.  §  54;  comp.  44.    Also  Pertsch.  Kirch.,  Hist.  I,  362. 


SUMMARY    VIEW.  37 

the  name  of  the  whole  church.  The  epistles  of  the  apos- 
tle Paul,  which  treat  of  various  controverted  ecclesiasti- 
cal matters,  are  addressed  to  whole  churches,  and  he 
assumes  that  the  decision  belonged  to  the  whole  body. 
Had  it  been  otherwise,  would  he  not  have  addressed  his  in- 
structions and  advice,  principally  at  least,  to  the  overseers 
of  the  church  ?  When  a  licentious  person  belonging  to  the 
church  at  Corinth  is  to  be  excommunicated,  the  apostle 
treats  it  as  a  measure  that  ought  to  proceed  from  the 
whole  society;  and  places  himself,  therefore,  in  spirit 
among  them,  to  unite  with  them  in  passing  'judgment ; 
1  Cor.  5 :  3  —  5.  Also,  when  discoursing  of  the  settlement 
of  litigations,  the  apostle  does  not  affirm  that  it  properly 
belonged  to  the  overseers  of  the  church;  but  if  this  had 
been  the  prevalent  custom,  he  would  no  doubt  have  referred: 
to  it ;  what  he  says  seems  rather  to  imply  that  it  was  usual,, 
in  particular  instances,  to  select  arbitrators  from  among  the 
members  of  the  church,  1  Cor.  6 :  5M 

Greiling,  after  going  through  with  an  examination  of  the 
government  of  the  apostolical  churches,  gives  the  following 
summary.  "  In  the  age  of  the  apostles,  there  was  no  primate 
of  the  churches,  but  the  entire  equality  of  brethren  prevailed. 
They  themselves  exercised  no  kind  of  authority  or  power 
over  the  churches ;  but  styled  themselves  their  helpers  and 
servants.  The  settlement  of  controverted  points,  the  adop- 
tion of  new  rites,  the  discipline  of  the  church,  the  election 
of  presbyters,  and  even  the  election  of  an  apostle,  was 
submitted  to  the  church,  and  done  with  their  concurrence, 
and  in  their  name.  The  principle  on  which  the  apostles 
proceeded  was,  that  the  church,  that  is,  the  elders  and  the 
members  of  the  church  unitedly,  were  the  depositaries  of 
all  their  social  rights,  and  that  no  others  could  exercise  this 
right  but  those  to  whom  the  church  might  entrust  it,  and  who 

14  Neander,  Apost.  Kirch.,  I,  pp.  1,  201.    Comp.  also,  p.  214. 

4 


38  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

were  accordingly  amenable  to  the  church.  Even  the  apos- 
tles, though  next  to  Christ  himself,  invested  with  the  highest 
authority,  assumed  no  superiority  over  the  presbyters,  but 
treated  them  as  brethren,  and  styled  themselves  fellow- 
presbyters, — thus  recognizing  them  as  associates  in  office." ^^ 

Finally,  the  worship  of  the  primitive  churches  was 
remarkable  for  its  freedom  and  simplicity.  Their  religious 
rites  were  few  and  simple ;  and  restrained  by  no  compli- 
cated ritual,  or  prescribed  ceremonials.  This  point  is  con- 
sidered, at  length,  in  a  subsequent  part  of  the  work. 

The  government  was  throughout  wholly  popular.  Every 
church  adopted  its  own  regulations,  and  enacted  its  own 
laws.  These  laws  were  administered  by  officers  elected 
by  the  church.  No  one  church  was  dependent  upon 
another.  They  were  represented  in  synod  by  their  own 
delegates.  Their  discipline  was  administered,  not  by  the 
clergy,  but  by  the  people  or  the  church  collectively.  And 
even  after  ordination  became  the  exclusive  right  of  the 
bishop,  no  one  was  permitted  to  preach  to  any  congregation, 
who  was  not  sufficiently  approved,  and  duly  accepted  by 
the  congregation ;  and  all  their  religious  worship  was  con- 
ducted on  the  same  principles  of  freedom  and  equality. 

Such  was  the  organization  of  the  Christian  church  in  its 
primitive  simplicity  and  purity.  The  national  peculiarities 
of  the  Jewish  and  Gentile  converts,  in  some  degree,  mod- 
ified individual  churches,  but  the  form  of  government  was 
substantially  the  same  in  all.  We  claim  not,  indeed,  for  it 
authority  absolutely  imperative  and  divine,  to  the  exclusion 
of  every  other  system,  but  it  has,  we  must  believe,  enough 
of  precept,  of  precedent,  and  of  principle,  to  give  it  a 
sanction  truly  apostolic.  Its  advantages  and  practical  re- 
sults justly  claim  an  attentive  consideration. 

15  Apostol.  Christengemeinen.    Halberstadt,  1819. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCHES  FORMED  AFTER  THE  MODEL 
OF  THE  JEWISH  SYNAGOGUE. 

The  apostles  and  the  first  disciples  were  Jews,  who, 
after  their  conversion,  retained  all  the  prejudices  and  par- 
tialities of  their  nation.  They  observed  still  all  the  rites 
of  their  religion;  and,  firmly  believing  that  salvation  by 
Christ  belonged  only  to  the  circumcision,  they  refused 
the  ministry  of  reconciliation  to  the  Gentiles.  All  their 
national  peculiarities  led  them  to  conform  the  Christian 
to  the  Jewish  church. 

With  the  temple  service  and  the  Mosaic  ritual,  however, 
Christianity  had  no  affinity.  The  sacrificial  offerings  of 
the  temple,  and  the  Levitical  priesthood,  it  abolished.  But 
in  the  synagogue  worship,  the  followers  of  Christ  found  a 
more  congenial  institution.  It  invited  them  to  the  reading 
of  the  Scriptures,  and  to  prayer.  It  gave  them  liberty  of 
speech  in  exhortation,  and  in  worshipping  and  praising 
God.  The  rules  and  government  of  the  synagogue,  while 
they  offered  little,  comparatively,  to  excite  the  pride  of 
office  and  of  power,  commended  themselves  the  more  to 
the  humble  believer  in  Christ.  The  synagogue  was  en- 
deared to  the  devout  Jew  by  sacred  associations  and  tender 
recollections.  It  was  near  at  hand,  and  not,  like  the 
temple,  afar  off.  He  went  but  seldom  up  to  Jerusalem,  and 
only  on  great  occasions  joined  in  the  rites  of  the  temple 


40  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

service.  But  in  the  synagogue  he  paid  his  constant  devo- 
tions to  the  God  of  his  fathers.  It  met  his  eye  in  every 
place.  It  was  constantly  before  him,  and  from  infancy  to 
hoary  age,  he  was  accustomed  to  repair  to  that  hallowed 
place  of  worship,  to  listen  to  the  reading  of  his  sacred 
books,  to  pray  and  sing  praises  unto  the  God  of  Israel.  _ 
In  accordance  with  pious  usage,  therefore,  the  apostles 
continued  to  frequent  the  synagogues  of  the  Jews. 
.Wherever  they  went,  they  resorted  to  these  places  of  wor- 
ship, and  strove  to  convert  their  brethren  to  faith  in  Christ, 
not  as  a  new  religion.,  but  as  a  modification  of  their  own. 

In  their  own  religious  assemblies  they  also  conformed, 
as  far  as  was  consistent  with  the  spirit  of  the  Christian 
religion,  to  the  same  rites,  and  gradually  settled  upon  a 
church  organization  which  harmonized,  in  a  remarkable 
manner,  with  that  of  the  Jewish  synagogue.  They  even 
retained  the  same  name,  as  the  appellation  of  their  Christian 
assemblies.  "If  there  come  into  your  assembly,  avvayor^^, 
if  there  come  into  your  syjiagogue  a  man  with  a  gold  ring, 
&c."  James  2:2.  Compare  also  iniavvayojYrjv.  Heb. 
10 :  25.  Their  modes  of  worship  were,  substantially,  the 
same  as  those  of  the  synagogue.  The  titles  of  their 
officers  they  also  borrowed  from  the  same  source.  The 
titles.  Bishop,  Pastor,  Presbyter,  &:c.,  were  all  familiar  to 
them-  as  synonymous  terms,  denoting  the  same  class  of 
officers  in  the  synagogue.  Their  duties  and  prerogatives 
remained,  in  substance,  the  same  in  the  Christian  church 
as  in  that  of  the  Jews. 

So  great  was  this  similarity  between  the  primitive 
Christian  churches  and  the  Jewish  synagogues,  that  by 
the  Pagan  nations  they  were  mistaken  for  the  same  institu- 
tions. Pagan  historians  uniformly  treated  the  primitive 
Christians   as  Jews.i     As   such,  they  suffered  under  the 

J  Vitringa  De  Synagog.^Vet.  Pfolegom.,  pp.  3, 4. 


MODEL    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCHES.  41 

persecutions  of  their  idolatrous  rulers.  These,  and  many 
other  particulars  that  might  be  mentioned,  are  sufficient  to 
show,  that  the  ecclesiastical  polity  of  the  Jewish  synag-ogue 
was  very  closely  copied  by  the  apostles  and  primitive 
Christians  in  the  organization  of  their  assemblies. 

In  support  of  the  foregoing  statements,  authorities,  to 
any  extent,  and  of  the  highest  character,  might  easily  be 
adduced.  Let  the  following,  however,  suffice,  from  Nean- 
der,  who  is  generally  acknowledged  to  be  more  profoundly 
skilled  in  the  history  of  the  Christian  church  than  any 
other  man  now  living.  "  The  disciples  had  not  yet 
attained  a  clear  understanding  of  that  call,  which  Christ 
had  already  given  them  by  so  many  intimations,  to  form  a 
church  entirely  separated  from  the  existing  Jewish  econo- 
my; to  that  economy  they  adhered  as  much  as  possible; 
all  the  forms  of  the  national  theocracy  w^ere  sacred  in  their 
esteem;  it  seemed  the  natural  element  of  their  religious 
consciousness,  though  a  higher  principle  of  life  had  been 
imparted,  by  which  that  consciousness  was  to  be  progres- 
sively inspired  and  transformed.  They  remained  out- 
wardly Jews,  although,  in  proportion  as  their  faith  in  Jesus 
as  the  Redeemer  became  clearer  and  stronger,  they  w^ould 
inwardly  cease  to  be  Jews,  and  all  external  rites  would 
assume  a  different  relation  to  their  internal  life.  It  was 
their  belief  that  the  existing  religious  forms  would  continue 
till  the  second  coming  of  Christ,  when  a  new  and  higher 
order  of  things  would  be  established,  and  this  great  change 
they  expected  would  shortly  take  place.  Hence  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  distinct  mode  of  worship  was  far  from  enter- 
ing their  thoughts.  Although  new  ideas  respecting  the 
essence  of  true  worship  arose  in  their  minds  from  the  light 
of  faith  in  the  Redeemer,  they  felt  as  great  an  interest  in 
the  temple  worship  as  any  devout  Jews.  They  believed, 
however,  that  a  sifting  would  take  place  among  the  mem- 
bers of  the  theocracy,  and  that  the  better  part  would,  by 
4# 


42  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  acknowledgment  of  Jesus  as  the  Messiah,  be  incorpo- 
rated with  the  Christian  community.  As  the  believers,  in' 
opposition  to  the  mass  of  the  Jewish  nation  who  remained 
hardened  in  their  unbelief,  now  formed  a  community  inter- 
nally bound  together  by  the  one  faith  in  Jesus  as  the 
Messiah,  and  by  the  consciousness  of  the  higher  life 
received  from  him,  it  was  necessary  that  this  internal 
union  should  assume  a  certain  external  form.  And  a 
model  for  such  a  smaller  community  within  the  great 
national  theocracy  already  existed  among  the  Jews,  along 
with  the  temple  worship,  namely,  the  synagogues.  The. 
means  of  religious  edification  w^hich  they  supplied,  took 
account  of  the  religious  welfare  of  all,  and  consisted  of 
united  prayers  and  the  addresses  of  individuals  who 
applied  themselves  to  the  study  of  the  Old  Testament. 
These  means  of  edification  closely  corresponded  to  the 
nature  of  the  new  Christian  worship.  This  form  of  social 
worship,  as  it  was  copied  in  all  the  religious  communities 
founded  on  Judaism  (such  as  the  Essenes),  was  also 
adopted,  to  a  certain  extent,  at  the  first  formation  of  the 
Christian  church.  But  it  may  be  disputed,  whether  the 
apostles,  to  whom  Christ  committed  the  chief  direction  of 
affairs,  designed  from  the  first  that  believers  should  form  a 
society  exactly  on  the  model  of  the  synagogue,  and,  in 
pursuance  of  this  plan,  instituted  particular  offices  for  the 
government  of  the  church  corresponding  to  that  model — or 
whether,  without  such  a  preconceived  plan,  distinct  offices 
were  appointed,  as  circumstances  required,  in  doing  which 
they  would  avail  themselves  of  the  model  of  the  synagogue 
with  which  they  were  familiar."^  The  latter  supposition 
is  forcibly  advocated  by  Neander,^  who  proceeds  to  say, 
"Hence,  we  are  disposed  to  believe,  that  the  church  was  at 
first  composed  entirely  of  members  standing  on  an  equality 

2  Apost.  Kirch.,  3d  edit.,  p.  4.     Comp.  179,  198. 

3  Comp.,  also,  Rothe,  Anfange,  p.  163.    Note. 


MODEL    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCHES.  43 

one  with  anotlier,  and  that  the  apostles  alone  held  a  higher 
rank,  and  exercised  a  directing-  influence  over  the  whole, 
which  arose  from  the  original  position  in  which  Christ  had 
placed  them  in  relation  to  other  believers;  so  that  the 
whole  arrangement  and  administration  of  the  affairs  of  the 
church  proceeded  from  them,  and  they  were  first  induced 
hy  particular  circumstances  to  appoint  other  church  officers, 
as  in  the  instance  of  deacons. "^  To  the  same  effect  is  also 
Neander's  account  of  this  subject  in  his  Church  History, 
where  he  shows  that  this  organization  of  Christian  churches 
was  the  most  natural  under  existing  circumstances,  and  the 
most  acceptable,  not  only  to  Jewish  converts,  but  to  those  who 
were  gathered  from  the  subjects  of  the  Roman  governrrient.^ 
If  the  reader  require  other  authority  on  this  subject,  he  has 
only  to  examine  Vitringa,  De  Synagoga  Vetere,  especially 
his  third  book,  to  say  nothing  of  Selden,  Lightfoot,  and 
many  others.  Vitringa  himself  has  fully  sustained  the 
bold  title  which  he  gives  to  his  immortal  work, — "  Three 
books  on  the  ancient  Synagogue ;  in  which  it  is  demon- 
strated, that  the  form  of  government  and  of  the  ministry  in 
the  synagogue  was  transferred  to  the  Christian  church." 

It  is  gratifying  to  observe,  that  these  views  of  the 
great  Lutheran  historian  are  fully  avowed  by  Archbishop 
Whately  with  his  usual  independence  and  candor.  "  It  is 
probable  that  one  cause,  humanly  speaking,  why  we  find 
in  the  Sacred  Books  less  information  concerning  the 
Christian  ministry  and  the  constitution  of  church-govern- 
ments than  we  otherwise  might  have  found,  is  that  these 
institutions  had  less  of  novelty  than  some  would  at  first 
sight  suppose,  and  that  many  portions  of  them  did  not 
wholly  originate  with  the  apostles.  It  appears  highly 
probable, — I  might  say,  morally  certain, — that  wherever  a 
Jewish  synagogue  existed,  that  was  brought, — the  whole, 

4  P.  44.     Comp.  195;  seq.    So,  also,  Rothe,  Anfange,  p.  UG— 148. 

5  Kirchen.  Gesch.,  I,  p.  183—185. 


44  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

or  the  chief  part  of  it, — to  embrace  the  gospel,  the  apostles 
did  not,  there,  so  much  form  a  Christian  church  (or  con- 
gregation,* ecclesia)^  as  make  an  existing  congregation 
Christian;  by  introducing  the  Christian  sacraments  and 
worship,  and  establishing  whatever  regulations  were  requi- 
site for  the  newly-adopted  faith;  leaving  the  machinery 
(if  I  may  so  speak)  of  government  unchanged;  the  "rulers 
of  synagogues,  elders,  and  other  officers  (whether  spiritual 
or  ecclesiastical,  or  both),  being  already  provided  in  the 
existing  institutions.  And  it  is  likely  that  several  of  the 
earliest  Christian  churches  did  originate  in  this  way;  that 
is,  that  they  were  converted  synagogues ;  which  became 
Christian  churches  as  soon  as  the  members,  or  the  main 
part  of  the  members,  acknowledged  Jesus  as  the  Messiah. 
"  The  attempt  to  effect  this  conversion  of  a  Jewish  syna- 
gogue into  a  Christian  church,  seems  always  to  have  been 
made,  in  the  first  instance,  in  every  place  where  there  was 
an  opening  for  it.  Even  after  the  call  of  the  idolatrous 
Gentiles,  it  appears  plainly  to  have  been  the  practice  of  the 
apostles  Paul  and  Barnabas,!  when  they  came  to  any  city 

*  The  word  "  congregation,^^  as  it  stands  in  our  version  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament (and  it  is  one  of  very  frequent  occurrence  in  the  Books  of  Moses), 
is  found  to  correspond,  in  the  Septuagint,  which  was  familiar  to  the  New- 
Testament  writers,  to  ecclesia;  the  word  which,  in  our  version  of  these 
last,  is  always  rendered — not  "  congregation,"  but  "church."  This,  or  its 
equivalent,  "  kirk,"  is  probably  no  other  than  "  circle ;"  i.  e.,  assembly, 
ecclesia. 

t  These  seem  to  be  the  first  who  are  employed  in  converting  the  idola- 
trous  Gentiles  to  Cluistianity,*  and  their  first  considerable  harvest  among 
these  seems  to  have  been  at  Antioch  in  Pisidia,  as  may  be  seen  by  any  one 
who  attentively  reads  the  13th  chapter  of  Acts.  Peter  was  sent  to  Corne- 
lius, a  "devout"  Gentile ; — one  of  those  who  had  renounced  idolatry,  and 
frequented  the  synagogues.  And  these  seem  to  have  been  regarded  by 
him  as  in  an  especial  manner  his  particular  charge.  His  epistles  appear 
to  have  been  addressed  to  them,  as  may  be  seen  both  by  the  general  tenor 
of  his  expression,!  and  especially  in  the  opening  address,  which  is  not  (as 
would  appear  from  our  version)  to  the  dispersed  Jews,  but  to  the  "  so- 
journers of  the  dispersion,"  naQE7ii8rifj.ovgy  diaanogag,  i.  e.  the  devout 
Gentiles  living  among  the  "  dispersion." 

*  See  Barrington's  Miscellanea  Sacra.  t  See  Hinds's  History,  Vol.  II. 


MODEL    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCHES.  45 

in  which  there  was  a  synagogue,  to  go  thither  first  and 
deliver  their  sacred  message  to  the  Jews  and  '  devout  (or 
proselyte)  Gentiles ;' — according  to  their  own  expression 
(Acts  13 :  17),  to  the  *  men  of  Israel  and  those  that  feared 
God:'  adding,  that  'it  was  necessary  that  the  word  of 
God  should  first  be  preached  to  them.'  And  when  they 
founded  a  church  in  any  of  those  cities  in  which  (and  such 
were,  probably,  a  very  large  majority)  there  was  no  Jewish 
synagogue  that  received  the  gospel,  it  is  likely  they  would 
still  conform,  in  a  great  measure,  to  the  same  model."^ 

It  is,  then,  an  admitted  fact,  as  clearly  settled  as  any 
thing  can  be  by  human  authority,  that  the  primitive  Chris- 
tians, in  the  organization  of  their  assemblies,  formed  them 
after  the  model  of  the  Jewish  synagogue.  They  discarded 
.the  splendid  ceremonials  of  the  temple-service,and retained 
the  simple  rites  of  the  synagogue  worship.  They  disowned 
the  hereditary  aristocracy  of  the  Levitical  priesthood,'^  and 
adopted  the  popular -government  of  the  synagogue. ^ 

We  are  here  presented  with  an  important  fact  in  the 
organization  of  the  primitive  churches,  strongly  illustrative 
of  the  popular  character  of  their  constitution  and  govern- 
ment. The  synagogue  was,  essentially,  a  popular  assem- 
bly,-invested  with  the  rights  and  possessing  the  powers 
which  are  essential  to  the  enjoyment  of  religious  liberty. 
Their  government  was  voluntary,  elective',  free;  and 
administered  by  rulers  or  elders  elected  by  the  people. 
The  ruler  of  the  synagogue  was  the  moderator  of  the 
college  of  elders,  but  only  primus  inter  pares,  holding  no 
official  rank  above  them.9      The  people,  as  Vitringa  has 

6  Kingdom  of  Christ,  pp.  83 — 8G. 

7  The  prelatical  reference  •  of  the  Christian  ministry  to  the  Levitical 
priesthood  is  a  device  of  a  later  age,  though  it  has  been  common  from  the 
time  of  Cyprian  downward  to  the  present  time. 

8  Totum  regimen  ecclesiasticum  conformatum  fuit  ad  synogogarum 
exemplar.     Hugo  Grotius,  Comment.,  ad  Act.  11 :  30. 

9  Vitringa,  De  Vet.  Syn.,  L.  3,  c.  16. 


46  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

sliown,io  appointed  their  own  officers  to  rule  over  them. 
They  exercised  the  natural  right  of  freemen  to  enact  and 
execute  their  own  laws, — to  admit  proselytes, — and  to 
exclude,  at  pleasure,  unworthy  members  from  their  com- 
munion. Theirs  was  "  a  democratical  form  of  governments^ 
and  is  so  described  by  one  of  the  most  able  expounders 
of  the  constitution  of  the  primitive  churches. ii  Like  their 
prototype,  therefore,  the  primitive  churches  also  embodied 
the  principle  of  a  popular  government  and  of  enlightened 
religious  liberty. 

10  Comp.  Vitringa,  De  Synagoga,  Lib.  3,  p.  1,  c.  15.  pp.  828—863.  JVihil 
actum  absque  ecclesia  [i.  e.  the  synagogue]  quae  in  publico  consulta  est, 
et  quidem  hac  ipsa  formula  DD'^^'J?  JUH'  sive  a^tog,  quam  in  vetero 
ecclesia  in  eligendis  episcopis  adhibitam  meminimus,  p.  829.  In  vita 
Josephi  publica  omnia  ibi  tractari  videmus  in  synagoga,  consvlto  populo, 
p.  832. 

"  Rothe,  Anfange,  der  Christ,  Kirch.,  p.  14. 


CHAPTER  III. 

INDEPENDENCE  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCHES. 

The  churches  which  were  estahlished  by  the  apostles 
and  their  disciples  exhibit  a  remarkable  degree  of  unanimity 
one  towards  another.  One  in  faith  and  the  fellowship  of 
love,  they  were  united  in  spirit  as  different  members  of 
one  body,  or  as  brethren  of  the  same  family,  i  This  union 
and  fellowship  of  spirit  the  apostles  carefully  promoted 
among  all  the  churches.  But  they  instituted  no  external 
form  of  union  or  confederation  between  those  of  different 
towns  or  provinces;  nor,  within  the  first  century  of  the 
Christian  era  can  any  trace  of  such  a  confederacy,  whether 
diocesan  or  voluntary,  be  detected  on  the  page  of  history. 
The  diocesan,  metropolitan  and  patriarchal  forms  of  organ- 
ization belong  to  a  later  age.  The  idea  of  a  holy  catholic 
church,  one  and  indivisible,  had  not  yet  arisen  upon  the 
world,  nor  had  the  church  assumed  any  outward  form  of 
union.  Wherever  converts  to  Christianity  were  multiplied 
they  formed  themselves  into  a  church,  under  the  guidance 
of  their  religious  teachers,  for  the  enjoyment  of  Christian 
ordinances.  But  each  individual  church  constituted  an 
independent  and  separate  community.  The  society  was 
purely  voluntary,  and  every  church  so  constituted  was 
strictly  independent  of  all   others   in   the  conduct  of  its 

1  1  Cor.  12 :  12, 13.    Eph.  2 :  20.    4:3. 


48  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

worship,  the  admission  of  its  members,  the  exercise  of  its 
discipline,  the  choice  of  its  officers  and  the  entire  manage- 
ment of  its  affairs.  They  were,  in  a  word,  independent 
repubHcs,  as  Mosheim  and  Neander  justly  describe  them. 
"  Each  individual  church  which  had  a  bishop  or  presbyter 
of  its  own,  assumed  to  itself  the  form  and  rights  of  a  little 
distinct  republic  or  commonwealth ;  and  with  regard  to  its 
internal  concerns  was  wholly  regulated  by  a  code  of  laws, 
that  if  they  did  not  originate  with,  had  at  least  received 
the  sanction  of  the  people  constituting  such  church." 
This  is  said  with  special  reference  to  the  earliest  churches.  ^ 
"  In  regard  to  the  relations  of  the  presbyters  to  the  churches, 
they  were  appointed,  not  to  exercise  unlimited  authority,  but 
to  act  as  the  leaders  and  rulers  of  ecclesiastical  republics, 
to  transact  every  thing  in  connection  with  the  church,  not 
as  lords  of  the  same,  but  as  its  servants."  ^  The  opinion 
of  these  great  historians  of  the  church,  in  respect  to  the 
independent,  popular  character  of  the  government  of  the 
primitive  churches,  is  sufficiently  obvious  in  these  passages. 
Particular  neighboring  churches  may  for  various  reasons 
have  sustained  peculiar  fraternal  relations  to  each  other. 
Local  and  other  circumstances  may,  in  time,  have  given 
rise  to  correspondence  between  churches  more  remote,  or 
to  mutual  consultations  by  letter  and  by  delegates,  as  in 
the  instance  of  the  churches  at  Antioch  and  Jerusalem, 
Acts  15,  and  of  Corinth  and  Rome ;  ^  but  no  established 
jurisdiction  was  exercised  by  one  over  the  other,  nor  did 
any  settled  relations  subsist  between  them.  The  church 
at  Jerusalem,  with  the  apostles  and  elders,  addressed  the 
church  at  Antioch,  not  in  the  language  of  authority,  but  of 
advice.  Nor  does  all  ancient  histor}^  sacred  or  profane, 
relating   to   this    early  period,  record  a  single  instance   in 

2  Mosheim,  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  11,  §  22. 

3  JNeander,  Allgemein.  Gesch.,  \,  291,  2. 

*  See  Epistle  of  Clement  of  Rome,  to  the  Corinthians. 


INDEPENDENCE    OF    THE    CHURCHES.  49 

which  one  church  presumed  to  impose  laws  of  its  own 
upon  another. 

This  independence  of  the  churches,  one  of  another,  is 
fully  and  clearly  presented  by  Mosheim.     "  Although  all 
the  churches  were,  in  this  first  age  of  Christianity,  united 
together  in  one  common  bond  of  faith  and  love,  and  were, 
in  every  respect,  ready  to  promote  the  interest  and  welfare 
of  each  other  by  a  reciprocal  interchange  of  good  offices,, 
yet,  with  regard  to  government  and  internal  economy,  every 
individual  church  considered  itself  as  an  independent  com- 
munity, none  of  them  ever  looking  beyond  the  circle  of  its 
own  members  for  assistance,  or  recognizing  any  sort  of  exter- 
nal influence  or  authority.     Neither  in  the  New  Testament, 
nor  in  any  ancient  document  whatever,  do  we  find  any 
thing  recorded,  from  whence  it  might  be  inferred  that  any 
of  the  minor  churches  were  at  all  dependent  on,  or  looked 
up  for  direction  to,  those  of  greater  magnitude  or  conse- 
quence.    On    the    contrary,  several  things    occur   therein 
which   put   it   out  of  all   doubt,  that  every  one  of  them' 
enjoyed  the   same  rights,  and  was  considered  as  being  on 
a   footing   of    the    most   perfect    equality   with   the    rest. 
Indeed  it  cannot,  I   will  not  say  be  proved,  but  even  be 
made  to  appear  probable,  from  testimony  human  or  divine 
that  in  this  age  it  was  the  practice  for  several  churches  to 
enter  into  and  maintain  among   themselves,  that  sort  of 
association  which  afterwards  came  to  subsist   among  the 
churches    of    almost    every   province.     I   allude    to   their 
assembling  by  their  bishops,  at  stated  periods,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  enacting  general  law^s,  and  determining  any  ques- 
tions or  controversies  that  might  arise   respecting  divine 
matters.     It  is  not  until  the  second  century,  that  any  traces 
of  that  sort  of  association  from  whence  councils  took  their 
origin  are  to  be  perceived ;  when  we  find  them  occurring 
here   and  there,  some  of  them  tolerably  clear  and  distinct, 
others  again  but  shght  and  faint,  which  seems  plainly  to  prove 
5 


50  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

that  the  practice  arose  subsequently  to  the  times  of  the 
apostles,  and  that  all  that  is  urged  concerning  the  councils 
of  the  first  century  and  the  divine  authority  of  councils,  is 
sustained  merely  by  the  most  uncertain  kind  of  support, 
namely,  the  practice  and  opinion  of  more  recent  times."  ^ 

Indications  of  this  original  independence  are  distinctly 
manifested  even  after  the  rise  of  Episcopacy.  Every  bishop 
had  the  right  to  form  his  own  liturgy  and  creed,  and  to 
settle  at  pleasure  his  ovv^n  time  and  mode  of  celebrating 
the  religious  festivals.  ^  Cyprian  strongly  asserts  the 
right  of  every  bishop  to  make  laws  for  his  own  church. 
Socrates  assigns  this  original  independence  of  the  bishops 
as  the  principal  cause  of  the  endless  controversies  in  the 
church,  respecting  the  observance  of  Easter  and  other 
festivals.''' 

But  we  need  not  enlarge.  Nothing  in  the  history  of  the 
primitive  churches  is  more  incontrovertible,  than  the  fact  of 
their  absolute  independence  one  of  another.  It  is  attested 
by  the  highest  historical  authorities,  and  appears  to  be 
generally  conceded  by  Episcopal  authors  themselves.  "  At 
first,"  says  the  learned  Dr.  Barrow,  "  every  church  was 
settled  apart  under  its  own  bishops  and  presbyters,  so  as 
independently  and  separately  to  manage  its  own  concerns. 
Each  was  governed  by  its  own  head  and  had  its  own 
laws."  8 

"  Every  church,"  according  to  Dr.  Burton,  "  had  its  own 
spiritual  head  or  bishop,  and  was  independent  of  every 
other  church,  with  respect  to  its  own  internal  regulations 
and  laws.  There  was,  however,  a  connexion,  more  or 
less  intimate,  between  neighboring  churches,  which  was 

5  De  Rebus,  Christ.  Saec,  I,  §  48. 

6  Greiling,  Apostol.  Christengemein.,  p.  16. 

7  Eccles.  Hist.,  Lib.  5,  c.  22. 

8  Treatise  on  Pope's  Supremacy,  Works,  Vol.  I,  p.  662.  Comp.  King's 
Prim.  Christ.,  c.  12,  p.  14,  also  136. 


n 


INDEPENDENCE    OF    THE    CHURCHES.  51 

a  consequence,  in  some  degree,  of  the  geographical  or 
civil  divisions  of  the  empire.  Thus  the  churches  of  one 
province,  such  as  Achaia,  Egypt,  Cappadocia,  &c.,  formed 
a  kind  of  union,  and  the  bishop  of  the  capital,  particularly 
if  his  see  happened  to  be  of  apostolic  foundation,  acquired 
a  precedence  in  rank  and  dignity  over  the  rest.  This 
superiority  was  often  increased  by  the  bishop  of  the  capi- 
tal (who  was  called,  in  later  times,  the  metropolitan) 
having  actually  planted  the  church  in  smaller  and  more 
distant  places;  so  that  the  mother-church,  as  it  might 
literally  be  termed,  continued  to  feel  a  natural  and  pa- 
rental regard  for  the  churches  planted  by  itself.  These 
churches,  however,  were  wholly  independent  in  matters 
of  internal  jurisdiction ;  though  it  was  likely  that  there 
would  be  a  resemblance,  in  points  even  of  slight  import- 
ance, between  churches  of  the  same  province." 

Eiddle's  account  of  this  subject  is  as  follows:  — "  The 
apostles  or  their  representatives  exercised  a  general  super- 
intendence over  the  churches  by  divine  authority,  attested 
by  miraculous  gifts.  The  subordinate  government  of  each 
particular  church  was  vested  in  itself;  that  is  to  say,  the 
whole  body  elected  its  ministers  and  officers,  and  was  con- 
sulted concerning  all  matters  of  importance.  All  churches 
were  independent  of  each  other,  but  were  united  by  the 
bonds  of  holy  charity,  sympathy  and  friendship."^ 

Similar  views  are  also  expressed  by  Archbishop  Whate- 
ly.  "  Though  there  was  one  Lord,  one  faith,  one  bap- 
tism, for  all  of  these,  yet  they  were  each  a  distinct, 
independent  community  on  earth,  united  by  the  common 
principles  on  which  they  were  founded  by  their  mutual 
agreement,  affection  and  respect ;  but  not  having  any  one 
recognized  head  on  earth,  or  acknowledging  any  sove- 
reignty  of    one    of    those   societies    over    others.      Each 

9  Chronology,  Beginning  of  Second  Century. 


52  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

bishop  originally  presided  over  one  entire  church."  ^^ 
Now  what,  according  to  these  Episcopal  concessions,  was 
the  bishop  at  first,  but  the  pastor  of  a  single  church,  a 
parochial  bishop,  exercising  only  the  jurisdiction,  and  en- 
joying the  rights  of  an  independent  Congregational  min- 
ister?    But  more  of  this  hereafter. 

Several  of  the  ancient  churches  firmly  asserted  and 
maintained  their  original  religious  liberty,  by  refusing  to 
acknowledge  the  authority  of  the  ancient  councils,  for  a 
long  time  after  the  greater  part  of  the  churches  had  sub- 
jected themselves  to  the  authority  of  these  confederacies. 
The  church  in  Africa,  for  example,  and  some  of  the  Eastern 
churches,  although  they  adopted  the  custom  of  holding 
councils,  and  were  in  correspondence  with  these  churches, 
declined  entering  into  any  grand  Christian  confederation 
with  them ;  and,  for  a  long  time,  remained  inflexibly  tena- 
cious of  their  own  just  liberty  and  independence.  This 
their  example  is  an  effectual  argument  in  refutation  of 
those  who  pretend  that  these  councils  were  divinely  ap- 
pointed and  had,  jure  divino,  authority  over  the  churches. 
Who  can  suppose  that  these  churches  would  have  asserted 
their  independence  so  sternly,  against  an  institution  ap- 
pointed by  our  Lord  or  his  apostles  ?  ^ 

The  independence  of  the  churches,  then,  is  conceded 
even  by  Episcopalians  themselves.  It  has  both  the  sanc- 
tion of  apostolical  precedent,  and  the  concurring  authority 
of  ecclesiastical  writers,  ancient  and  modern.  This  of 
itself  is  a  point  strongly  illustrative  of  the  religious  freedom 

10  Kingdom  of  Christ.    N.  Y.,  1842  5  p.  110,  136. 

iiEven  the  council  of  Nice,  in  treating  of  the  authority  of  the  metropolitan 
bishops  of  Rome,  Antioch  and  Alexandria,  rest  the  dignity  and  authority 
of  tliese  prelates,  not  on  any  divine  right,  but  solely  on  ancient  usage. 
Tu  uqxuia  %Qi]  xqutslto)^  &c.,  Ijieidri  xul  tw  6V  irj  Pia^ri  ItckT" 
ic6n(i>  crvvi]66g,  scrrlf,  Can.  6.  Comp.  Du.Pin,  Antiq.Eccel.  Disciplina, 
Diss.  1.,  §  7.    Mosheim,  De  Rebus  Christ.  Saec,  II.,  §  23,  Note. 


INDEPENDENCE    OF    THE    CHURCHES.  53 

which  was  the  basis  of  their  original  polity.  This  inde- 
pendence of  particular  churches  is  the  great  central  princi- 
ple, the  original  element,  of  their  popular  constitution  and 
government.  It  vests  the  authority  and  power  of  each 
church  in  its  own  members  collectively.  It  guards  their 
rights.  It  guarantees  to  them  the  elective  franchise,  and 
gives  them  the  enjoyment  of  religious  liberty,  under  a 
government  administered  by  the  voice  of  the  majority,  or 
delegated  at  pleasure  to  their  representatives.  The  consti- 
tution of  the  churches,  and  their  mutual  relations,  may  not 
have  been  precisely  Congregational  or  Presbyterian,  but 
they  involved  the  principles  of  the  religious  freedom  and 
the  popular  rights  which  both  are  designed  to  protect. 


5* 


CHAPTER  IV. 

ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH. 

The  right  of  suffrage  was,  from  the  beginning,  enjoyed 
in  the  Christian  church.  The  first  public  act  of  this  body- 
was  a  formal  recognition  and  a  legitimate  exercise  of  this 
right.  First  in  importance  among  their  popular  rights, 
they  maintained  it  with  greater  constancy  than  any  other 
against  the  usurpations  of  prelatical  power,  and  resigned 
it  last  of  all  into  the  hands  of  their  spiritual  oppressors. 
The  subject  of  the  following  chapter  leads  us  to  consider, 

I.  The  evidence  that  the  right  of  suffrage  was  enjoyed 
by  the  primitive  church. 

II.  The  time  and  means  of  the  extinction  of  this  right. 

I.  The  members  of  the  primitive  church  enjoyed  the 
right  of  electing;  by  a  popular  vote,  their  own  officers  and 
teachers.  The  evidence  in  support  of  this  position  is 
derived  from  the  writings  of  the  apostles  and  of  the  early 
fathers.  In  the  former,  we  have  on  record  instances  of  the 
election  of  an  apostle,  and  of  deacons,  delegates  and  pres- 
byters of  the  church,  each  by  a  popular  vote  of  that  body. 
From  the  latter,  we  learn  that  the  church  continued  for 
several  centuries  subsequent  to  the  age  of  the  apostles,  in 
the  enjoyment  of  the  elective  franchise. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  55 

1.  The  scriptural  argument  from  the  writmgs  of  the 
apostles. 

(a)     The  election  of  an  apostle. 

The  first  public  act  of  the  church,  after  our  Lord's  ascen- 
sion, was  the  choice  of  a  substitute  in  the  place  of  the 
apostle  Judas.  This  election  was  made,  not  by  the  apos- 
tles themselves,  but  by  the  joint  action  of  the  whole  body 
of  believers.  If,  in  any  instance,  the  apostles  had  the 
right,  by  their  own  independl^nt  authority,  to  invest  another 
with  the  ministerial  office,  we  might  expect  them  to  exer- 
cise that  prerogative  in  supplying  this  vacancy  in  their 
own  body.  That  right,  however,  they  virtually  disclaim,  by 
submitting  the  election  to  the  arbitration  of  the  assembled 
body  of  believers.  If  they  exercised  any  leading  influence 
m  the  election,  it  was  in  nominating  the  two  candidates  for 
office,  Joseph  and  Matthias,  Acts  1 :  23.  Nothing,  however, 
appears  from  the  context  to  decide  whether  the  nomination, 
even,  proceeded  from  them,  or  from  the  church  collectively. 
But  however  that  may  be,  the  election  was  the  act  of  the 
assembly ;  and  was  made,  either  by  casting  lots,  or  by  an 
elective  vote.  Mosheim  understands  the  phrase,  Mwxej/ 
xlrigovg  a-dr^v,  to  express  the  casting  of  a  popidar  vote  by 
the  Christians.  To  express  the  casting  of  lots,  according 
to  this  author,  the  verb  should  have  been  s^aXov,  as  in  Math. 
27 :  35.  Luke  23 :  34.  John  19  :  24.  Mark  15 :  24. 
Compare  Septuagint,  Ps.  22:  19.  Joel  3 :  3.  Nah.  3:  10; 
which  also  accords  with  the  usage  of  Homer  in  similar 
cases. 1  But  the  phrase  £Jw;«e>'  itXri^ovg,  according  to  this 
author,  expresses  the  casting  of  a  popular-vote ;  the  term, 
xlr^govg,  being  used  in  the  sense  of  yf^jq;og,  a  suffrage,  or 
vote,  so  that  what  the  evangelist  meant  to  say  was  simply 
this, — "and  those  who  were  present  gave  their  votes." 2 

1  Iliad,  23;  352.    Odyss.,  14.  209. 

3  De  Rebus  Christ.  Saec,  1,  §  14,  Kote. 


56  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

The  precise  mode  of  determining  the  election,  perhaps,  can 
never  be  fully  settled.  Nor  are  the  persons  who  gave  the  vote 
clearly  designated,  but  they  appear  to  have  been  the  whole 
body  of  believers  then  present.  When  we  compare  this 
election  with  that  of  the  deacons  which  soon  followed,  and 
consider  the  uniform  custom  of  the  disciples  to  submit  to 
the  church  the  enacting  of  their  own  laws,  and  the  exer- 
cise of  their  popular  rights,  in  other  respects,  we  must 
regard  the  election  before  us  as  the  joint  act  of  the  brethren 
there  assembled.  For  this  opinion,  we  have  high  au- 
thority from  German  writers.  "  The  whole  company  of 
believers  had  a  part  in  supplying  the  number  of  the  apos- 
tles themselves,  and  the  choice  was  their  joint  act."  ^  "  At 
the  request  of  the  apostles,  the  church  choose,  by  lot, 
Matthias  for  an  apostle,  in  the  place  of  Judas."  ^  "  Without 
doubt,  those  expositors  adopt  the  right  view,  who  suppose 
that  not  only  the  apostles,  but  all  the  believers  were  at  that 
time  assembled ;  for,  though  in  Acts  1 :  26,  the  apostles 
are  primarily  intended,  yet  the  disciples  collectively  form 
the  chief  subject.  Acts  15,  to  which  all  at  the  beginning  of 
the  second  chapter  necessarily  refers."^  This  is  said  with 
reference  to  the  assembly  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  but  the 
reasoning  shows  distinctly  the  views  of  the  author  respect- 
ing the  persons  who  composed  the  assembly  at  the  election 
of  Matthias.  "  In  all  decisions  and  acts,  even  in  the  elec- 
tion of  the  twelfth  apostle,  the  church  had  a  voice." ^ 

Chrysostom's  exposition  of  the  passage,  confirmed  as  it 
is  also  by  Cyprian,  may,  without  doubt,  be  received  as  a  fair 
expression  of  the  sentiments  and  usages  of  the  early 
church  on  this  subject.     "  Peter  did  every  thing  here  with 


3  Rohr's  Kritischen  Predigenbibliothek,    Bd.  13,  Heft.  6. 

4  D.  Grossman  Ueber  eine  Reformation  der  protestantischen  Kirchenver- 
fassung  in  Konigreiche  Sachoen.     Leipsig,  1833,  p.  47. 

^Neander,  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  c.  1,  Note. 

6  Greiling's  Apostol.  Kirchengemeinen,  p.  15. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  57 

the  common  consent ;  nothing-  by  his  own  will  and  authori- 
ty. He  left  the  judgment  to  the  multitude,  to  secure  the 
greater  respect  to  the  elected,  and  to  free  himself  from 
every  invidious  reflection."  After  quoting  the  words, 
"  they  appointed  two,"  he  adds,  "  he  did  not  himself 
appoint  them,  it  was  the  act  of  all."'^ 

The  order  of  the  transaction  appears  to  be  as  follows :  — 
Peter  stands  up  in  the  midst  of  the  disciples,  convened  in 
assembly  to  the  number  of  one  hundred  and  twenty,  and 
explains  to  them  the  necessity  of  their  proceeding  to  the 
choice  of  another  apostle  in  the  place  of  the  apostate 
Judas,  and  urges  them  to  proceed  to  the  election  of  such. 
The  whole  assembly  then  designate  two  of  their  number 
as  candidates  for  the  office,  and  after  prayer  for  divine 
direction,  all  cast  lots,  and  the  lot  falls  upon  Matthias  ;8 
or,  according  to  Mosheim,  all  cast  their  votes,  and  the  vote 
falls  upon  Matthias.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  mode 
of  the  election,  it  appears  to  have  been  a  popular  vote, 
and  indicates  the  inherent  right  of  the  people  to  make 
the  election. 

{b)     The  election  of  the  seven  deacons.  Acts  6:1 — 6. 

The  proposition  originated,  again,  with  the  apostles.  It 
was  received  with  approbation  by  the  whole  multitude,  who 
immediately  proceeded  to  make  the  election  by  an  united 
and  public  vote.  The  order  of  the  transaction  is  very 
clearly  marked.  The  apostles  propose  to  "  the  multitude 
of  the  disciples  "  the  appointment  of  the  seven.  The  pro- 
posal is  favorably  received  by  "  the  whole  multitude,"  who 
accordingly  proceed  to  the  choice  of  the  proposed  number, 
and  set  them  before  the  apostles,  not  to  ratify  the  election, 
but  to  induct  them  into  office  by  the  laying  on  of  hands. 
This  election  is  clearly  set  forth  as  the  act  of  the  whole 

7  Horn,  ad  locum,  T.  IX,  p.  25.     Comp.  Cyprian,  Ep.  68. 

8  Rothe,  Anfange  der  Christ.  Kirch.,  p.  149, 


58  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

assembly,  and  is  so  universally  admitted  to  have  been  made 
by  a  popular  vote,  that  it  may  be  passed  without  further 
remark.  Indeed,  "  it  is  impossible,"  as  Owen  very  justly 
observes,  "  that  there  should  be  a  more  evident  convincing 
instance  and  example  of  the  free  choice  of  ecclesiastical 
officers  by  the  multitude  or  fraternity  of  the  church,  than 
is  given  us  herein.  Nor  was  there  any  ground  or  rea- 
son why  this  order  and  process  should  be  observed,  why 
the  apostles  would  not  themselves  nominate  and  appoint 
persons,  whom  they  saw  and  knew  meet  for  this  office  to 
receive  it,  but  that  it  was  the  right  and  liberty  of  the  people, 
according  to  the  mind  of  Christ,  to  choose  their  own  offi- 
cers, which  they  would  not  abridge  or  infringe." ^ 

(c)     The  election  of  delegates  of  the  churches. 

These  delegates  were  the  fellow-laborers  and  assistants 
of  the  apostle,  to  accompany  him  in  his  travels,  to  assist  in 
setting  in  order  the  churches,  and  generally  to  supply  his 
lack  of  service  to  all  the  churches,  the  care  of  which  came 
upon  him.  Such,  according  to  Rothe,  was  Timothy, 
whom  he  commends  as  his  fellow-laborer,  Rom.  16:  21. 

1  Thess.  3 :  2,  and  associates  with  himself  in  salutation  to 
the  churches.  Phil.  1:  1.  1  Thess.  1:  1.  2  Thess.  1:  1., 
&c.  Such  was  Titus,  2  Cor.  8 :  23.  Silvanus,  1  Thess. 
1:  1.  2  Thess.  1:  1.  Mark,  Coloss.  4:  10.  1  Pet.  5:  13. 
Clemens,  Phil.  4 :  3.     Epaphras,  Coloss.  1 :  7,  &c.io 

But  whatever  may  have  been  the  specific  duties  of  this 
office,  the  appointment  to  it  was  made  by  a  vote  of  the 
church.  One  such  assistant  Paul  greatly  commends,  who 
was  appointed  by  the  chxircb.,  %siQOTOV7]6slg  -vno  rav  ly.yJ.rjaiwVj 

2  Cor.  8:  19,  as  his  travelling  companion.  To  this  and 
the  election  of  the  seven  deacons,  Neander  refers,  as 
evidence  of  the  manner  in  which  this  popular  right  was 
exercised  in  the  churches.  "  Inasmuch  as  the  apostles 
submitted  the  appointment  of  the  deacons  to  the  vote  of  the 

9  Gospel  Church,  Chap.  IV.  lo  AnfangC;  I,  pp.305— 307. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHUHCH.  59 

church,  and  that  of  the  delegates  who  should  accompany 
them  in  the  name  of  the  churches,  we  may  infer  that  a 
similar  course  was  pursued  also  in  the  appointment  of  other 
officers  of  the  church."  ^^ 

Rothe  appeals  to  the  same  example,  as  a  clear  instance 
of  a  popular  election,  and  adds,  that  it  harmonizes  with  the 
authority  of  Clement  of  Rome,  who  states  explicitly,  that 
where  the  apostles  had  established  churches  they  appointed 
bishops  and  deacons,  ^^with  the  approbation  of  the  lohole 
church:''^^ 

(d)     The  election  of  presbyters. 

This  is  a  fair  conclusion  from  the  examples  that  have 
already  been  given.  If  the  apostles  submitted  to  the 
church  the  election  of  one  of  their  number  as  an  extraordi- 
nary and  temporary  minister,  much  more  may  they  be 
supposed  to  have  submitted  to  the  same  body  the  election 
of  their  ordinary  pastors  and  teachers,  the  presbyters.  Or, 
if  there  be  any  doubt  as  to  the  choice  of  Matthias  by  the 
church,  there  can  be  none  of  the  election  of  the  deacons 
and  delegates  by  a  popular  vote.  In  this  conclusion,  we 
are  sustained  by  the  authority  of  Neander,i3  Rothe,!^  and 
Mosheim.  "  That  the  presbyters  of  the  primitive  church 
of  Jerusalem  were  elected  by  the  suffrages  of  the  people, 
cannot,  I  think,  well  be  doubted  by  any  one  who  shall  have 
duly  considered  the  prudence  and  moderation  discovered 
by  the  apostles,  in  filling  up  the  vacancy  in  their  own 
number,  and  in  appointing  curators  or  guardians  for  the 
poor."!^  After  having  proceeded  to  invest  the  churches 
with  the  right  of  electing  their  own  officers,  can  the  apos- 
tles be  supposed  to  invade  this  sacred  right,  by  refusing  to 
them  the  election  of  their  own  pastors  and  teachers  ? 

These  several  instances  of  election  chiefly  relate  to  the 
church  at  Jerusalem.    But  wherever  churches  were  planted 

11  Allgemein.  Gesch.,  1;  p.  290.  12  Anfilnge,  I,  p.  151. 

13, 14  Cited  above.  i^  Mosheim;  De  Rebus  Christ.;  Saec.;  I,  $  39. 


60  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

by  the  apostles,  they  were,  without  doubt,  organized  after 
the  original  plan  of  that  at  Jerusalem ;  so  that  the  above  is 
a  fair  exhibition  of  the  mode  of  appointment  which  gene- 
rally prevailed  in  the  churches.  "  The  new  churches," 
says  Gieseler,  "  every  where  formed  themselves  on  the 
model  of  the  mother  church  at  Jerusalem."  16  So  also, 
Mosheim :  "  Since  all  these  churches  were  constituted  and 
formed  after  the  model  of  that  which  was  planted  at  Jeru- 
salem, a  review  of  the  constitution  and  regulations  of  this 
one  church  alone  will  enable  us  to  form  a  tolerably  accurate 
conception  of  the  form  and  discipline  of  all  these  primitive 
Christian  assemblies."!^ 

In  the  Gentile  churches  the  popular  principle  is  more 
strongly  marked  than  in  the  Jewish  churches,  but  the 
organization  of  all  appears,  at  first,  to  have  been  essentially 
the  same.  At  a  later  period,  all  may  have  been  more 
or  less  modified  by  peculiar  circumstances,  and  a  greater 
difference  may  necessarily  appear  in  the  government  of 
different  churches. 

The  conclusion  therefore  is,  that  the  apostolical  churches, 
generally,  exercised  the  right  of  universal  suffrage. 

On  the  same  principle,  Paul  and  Barnabas  may  be  pre- 
sumed to  have  proceeded,  when,  in  their  missionary  tour, 
they  appointed  presbyters  in  the  churches  where  they 
visited,  Acts  14:  23.  The  question  here  turns  wholly 
upon  the  interpretation  of  the  term,  xEigoTovriaravzeg,  ^'■when 
they  had  ordained^''''  or,  as  in  the  margin,  '■'-when  with  lifting 
up  of  hands  they  had  chosen  them." 

If,  according  to  the  marginal  reading,  we  understand, 
with  our  interpreters,  the  declaration  to  be,  that  the  apostles 
made  choice  of  these  disciples,  even  this  supposition  does 
not,  necessarily,  exclude  the  members  of  the  church  them- 
selves from  participating  in  the  election.  It  would  imply 
rather,  that  they  proceeded  in  the  usual  way,  by  calling  the 

16  Cunningham's  Trans.,  I,  p.  bQ.    ^^  De  Rebus  Christ.  SaeC;  1,  §  87. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.   .  61 

attention  of  the  churches  to  the  election  of  their  own 
presbyters;  just  as  in  the  instructions  which  Paul  gives  to 
Titus  and  to  Timothy,  respecting  the  appointment  of  pres- 
byters and  deacons  for  the  churches  of  Ephesus  and  Crete 
respectively,  the  participation  of  these  churches  in  the 
appointment  is  of  necessity  pre-supposed.  For,  "  from  the 
fact,  that  Paul,  in  committing  to  his  pupils,  as  to  Timothy 
and  Titus,  the  organization  of  new  churches,  or  of  those 
which  had  fallen  into  many  distractions,  committed  to 
them  also  the  appointment  of  the  presbyters  and  deacons, 
and  directed  their  attention  to  the  qualifications  requisite 
for  such  offices,— j^ow  this  fact  we  are  by  no  means  to 
infer,  that  they  themselves  effected  this  alone.,  without  the 
participation  of  the  churches.  Much  more,  indeed,  does 
the  manner  in  which  Paul  himself  is  elsewhere  wont  to 
address  himself  to  the  whole  church,  and  to  claim  the  co^ 
operation  of  the  Avhole,  authorize  us  to  expect,  that  at  least 
where  there  existed  a  church  already  established,  he-  would 
have  required  their  co-operation  also  in  matters  of  common 
concern.  But  the  supposition  is  certainly  possible,  that 
the  apostle,  in.  many  cases,  and  especially  in  forming  a 
new  church,  might  think  it  best  himself  to  propose  to  the 
church  the  persons  best  qualified  for  its  officers,  and' such  a 
nomination  must  naturally  have  had  great  weight.  In  the 
example  of  the  family  of  Stephanus  at  Corinth,  we  see  the 
members  of  the  household  first  converted  in  the  city,  becom- 
ing, also',  the  first  to  fill  the  offices  of  the  church. i^  Neander 
also  asserts,- that  this  mode  of  election,  by  the  whole  body  of 
the  church,  remained  unimpaired  in  the  third  century. i^ 

The  foregoing  views  of  Neander,  together  with  the 
following  extract  from  Mosheim,  give  us  a  clear  view  of 
the  manner  in  which  the  elective  franchise  was  exercised 
in  the  primitive  church,  through  the  first  three  centuries  of 

18  Apost.  Kirch.,  Vol.  I,  c.  5,  p.  194. 
»9  JNeander's  AUgem.  Gcsch.,  I,  323,  seq.  340—342,  2d  ed. 
6 


62  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  Christian  era.  "  To  them  (the  multitude,  or  people) 
belonged  the  appointment  of  the  bishop  and  presbyters,  as 
well  as  of  the  inferior  ministers, — with  them  resided  the 
power  of  enacting  laws,  as  also  of  adopting  or  rejecting 
whatever  might  be  proposed  in  the  general  assemblies,  and 
of  expelling  and  again  receiving  into  communion  any- 
depraved  or  unworthy  members.  In  short,  nothing  what- 
ever, of  any  moment,  could  be  determined  on,  or  carried 
into  effect,  without  their  knowledge  and  concurrence." 20 

But  the  phrase  itseU,  /sigoiovriuavTegj  may,  with  great 
probability,  be  understood  to  indicate  that  the  appoint- 
ment of  these  presbyters  was  by  a  public  vote  of  the  church. 

1.  This  is  the  appropriate  meaning  of  the  term,  xsiqoto- 
vbTp,  which  is  here  used.  It  means,  to  stretch  02it  the  hand^ 
to  hold  lip  the  hand,  as  in  voting ;  hence,  to  vote  ;  to  give 
one's  vote,  by  holding  up  the  hand.  So  it  is  rendered  by 
Robinson,  who,  in  the  passage  before  us,  translates  it, 
to  choose  by  vote,  to  appoint.  Suidas  also  renders  it 
by  ^JtXs^d/iiEvoi,  having  chosen.  Such  is  the  concurring 
authority  of  lexicographers. 

2.  This  rendering  is  sustained  by  the  common  use  of  the 
term  by  early  Christian  ivriters.  The  brother  who  accom- 
panied Paul  in  his  agency  to  make  charitable  collections 
for  the  suffering  Jews  in  Judea,  was  chosen  of  the  churches 
for  this  service,  where  the  same  word  is  Vl'&q^,  x^igojoviiQelq. 
"  It  will  become  you,"  says  Ignatius  to  the  church  at  Phila- 
delphia, "  as  the  church  of  God,  to  ordain,  xBiqoTov~r\aai^ 
to  choose  some  deacon  to  go  there,"  i.  e.,  to  the  church  at 
Antioch.21 

Again,  to  the  church  at  Smyrna,  "  It  will  be  fitting,  and 
for  the  honor  of  God,  that  your  church  appoint,  x^^Qorovriaaij 
elect  some  worthy  delegate,"  &c.~2 

The  council  of  Neocaesarea  directs  that  a  presbyter  should 
not  be  chosen,  fiij  x^^QoroveXadb),  before  he  is  thirty  years 

20  De  Rebus  Christ.  Saec,  1,  §45.     21  Ad  Phil.  c.  10.    22  Ad  Smyrn.,  c.  11. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  63 

old. 23  The  council  of  Antiocli  forbids  a  bishop  to  be 
chosen,  %eigoTOP£Tu6oj,  without  the  presence  of  the  synod, 
and  of  the  metropolitan  ;^'^  and  the  apostolical  canons  direct 
that  a  bishop  must  be  chosen,  x^^Qo^oveTadio,  by  two  or 
three  bishops.^^  Again,  in  the  Greek  version  of  the  Codex 
Ecclesias  Africance,  the  heading  of  the  nineteenth  canon  is, 
that  a  bishop  should  not  be  chosen,  xtiqoiovtluOui^  except 
by  the  multitude,  ^nb  uoXlibv.^^ 

The  above  examples  all  relate,  neither  to  an  official 
appointment  or  commission  granted  by  another,  nor  to  an 
ordination  or  consecration,  but  to  an  actual  election  by  a 
plurality  of  voters.  Do  they  not  justify  the  supposition, 
that  Paul  and  Barnabas,  like  the  apostles  in  the  case  of 
Matthias,  and  of  the  seven  deacons,  led  the  church  to  a 
popular  election  of  their  presbyters  ? 

3.  This  mode  of  appointment  loas  the  established  usage  of 
the  churches,  to  which  it  may  be  presumed  that  Paul  and 
Barnabas  adhered,  in  the  election  of  these  presbyters. 
The  appointment  of  Matthias  the  apostle,  of  the  seven 
deacons,  and  of  the  delegates  of  the  churches,  as  we  have 
already  seen,  was  by  a  public  vote  of  the  churches.  And 
the  same  continued  to  be  the  authorized  mode  of  appoint- 
ment at  the  close  of  the  apostolical  age ;  as  we  learn  from 
the  epistle  of  Clement,  cited  above,  who  also  rebukes  the 
church  of  Corinth  for  rejecting  from  their  office  those  pres- 
byters who  had  been  chosen  in  this  manner.^'''  We  have, 
then,  evidence  that  this  mode  of  election  had  been  observed 
in  the  appointment  of  all,  so  far  as  we  are  informed,  who 
had  been  invested  with  offices  in  the  church.  The  testi- 
mony of  Clement  is,  that  the  ministers  of  the  churches 
established  by  the  apostles  were  so  appointed;  from  all 
which  the  inference  is,  that  presbyters,  like  all  other  eccle- 
siastical officers,  were  appointed  by  vote  of  the  church. 

23  Cone.  Neocaesar.,  c.  11,  24  Cone.  Antioch.,  c.  19. 

25  Can.  Apost.,  e.  1.  26  Cited  by  Suieer,  ad  verbum. 

27  Ep.  I,  ad  Corinth.,  ^  U.     See  p.  63,  note. 


64  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

4.  This  conclasion  is  sustained  by  the  most  approved 
authorities.  According  to  Suicer,  the  primary  and  appro- 
priate signification  of  the.  term  is,  to  denote  an  election 
made  hij  the  uplifting  of  the  hand,  and  particularly  denotes 
the  election  of  a  bishop  by  vote.  "  In  this  sense,"  he  adds, 
"  it  continued  for  a  long  time  to  be  used  in  the  church,  de- 
noting not  an  ordination  or  consecration,hut  an  election." 28 
Grotius,29.  Meyer,^^  and  De  Wette^i  so  interpret  the  pas- 
sage, to  say  nothing  of  Beza,  Bohmer,  Rothe  and  others. 

To  the  same  effect  is  also  the  following  extract  from 
Tindal.  "  We  read  only  of  the  apostles  constituting 
elders  by  the  siiffrages  of  the  people,  Acts  14:  23,  which, 
as  it  is  the  genuine  signification  of  the  Greek  word, 
■%£iQOTOvriaavTeg,  so  it  is  accordingly  interpreted  by  Eras- 
mus, Beza,  Diodati,  and  those  who  translated  the  Swiss, 
French,  Italian,  Belgic,  and  even  English  Bibles,  till  the 
Episcopal  correction,  which  leaves  out  the  w^ords,  by  elec- 
tion, as  well  as  the  marginal  notes,  which  affirm  that  the 
apostles  did  not  thrust  pastors  into  the  church  through  a 
lordly  superiority,  but  chose  and  placed  them  there  by  the 
voice  of  the  congregation. ''''^'^  Tyndale's  translation  is  as 
follows.  "  And  when  they  had  oTdened  them  seniours,  by 
eleccion,  in  every  congregacion,  after  they  had  preyde  and 
fasted,  they .  commennd  them  to  God,  on  whom  they 
beleved."  In  view  of  the  whole,  must  we  not  conclude, 
that  presbyters,  like  all  other  ecclesiastical  officers,  were 
elected  in  the  apostolical  churches  by  the  suffrages  of  the 
people?  23     An(i  is  not  all  this  sufficient  to  justify  the  ren- 

28  Thesaurus,  EccL,  v.  ;^f  t^OTO^fi'w.  29^  30^  31  Comment,  ad  locum. 

32  Rights  of  the  Church,  p.  358. 

33  "It  may  not  have  occurred  to  some  of  our  readers,"  says  the  Edin- 
burgh Review,  ''that  the  Greek  word,  exahjalu,  which  we  translate 
church,  was  the  peculiar  term  used  to  denote  the  general  assembly  of  the 
people  in  the  old  democracies,  and  that  it  essentially  expresses  a  popularly 
constituted  meeting,  and  that  such,  in  a  great  measure,  was  the  original 
constitution  of  the  Christian  society." — Baudry's  Selections,  V,  p.  319. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  65 

dering  above  given,  though  the  term  be  used  to  denote  also 
either  an  official  appointment,  or  the  la^'ing  on  of  hands  ? 

2.  The  historical  argument  from  the  early  Fathers. 

When  from  the  writings  of  the  apostles  we  turn  to  the 
records  of  history,  we  find  evidence  sufficient  to  show  that 
the  churches  continued,  even  after  the  rise  of  Episcopacy, 
to  defend  and  to  exercise  the  right  of  election,  that  great 
principle  which  is  the  basis  of  religious  liberty. 

The  earliest  and  most  authentic  authority  on  this  sub- 
ject, after  that  of  the  Scriptures  themselves,  is  derived  from 
Clement  of  Rome,  contemporary  with  some  of  the  apostles. 
This  venerable  father,  in  his  epistle  to  the  church  at 
Corinth,  about  A.  D.  96,  or,  according  to  Bishop  Wake, 
"  between  the  60th  and  70th  year  of  Christ,"  speaks  of  the 
regulations  which  were  established  by  the  apostles,  for  the 
appointment  of  others  to  succeed  them  after  their  decease. 
This  appointment  was  to  be  made  ivith  the  consent  and  ap- 
probation of  the  whole  church,  avi'Evdoy.7]crua7]g  rr^g  ixxlrjalag 
nCtGTjg^  grounded  on  their  previous  knowledge  of  the  quali- 
fications of  the  candidate  for  this  office.  This  testimony 
clearly  indicates  the  active  co-operation  of  the  church 
in  the  appointment  of  their  ministers. ^4     It  may  have  been 

34  The  passage  has  been  already  cited,  but  it  is  here  given  at  length, 
with  the  title  of  C.  J.  Hefele  : — "  Apostolorum  institutio,  ne  de  munere 
sacerdotali  contentio  fiat.  Legitime  electos  ac  recte  viventes  de  munere  suo 
dejicere  nefas.  —  Kul  ol  (xnugoXov  r^i.iibi'  eyvMaav  dice  th  nvoia 
'fiuiop  'Irjas  Xgigs,  tlrt  'ifiig  tgut  Inl  t5  drofiuiog  ttjj  ^niayonrig. 
^i(i  TavTTjv  ov  rfiv  ahluv  ngoytotaiv  elh^qoieg  rtleiav  itujiqr^- 
aav  THg  7TQ0SiQi]fjevug^  xccl  /iiSTu^v  iTiu'ofiiif  dediaxaaiv,  ottw?, 
iav  xoifiTjdaoiv,  8iu8h^o)vjui  tjegot,  dedoxi^aa/ifipoL  ux'dgeg  ti]u 
XsLTugyiav  aiifov.  Tug  bp  HaragadevTag  iii  ixelrojv,  n^  fie- 
Ta|ti  {<cp^  eTSQCov  hXloyl^iuv  dcvdgibv,  avvsvdoxTjadcrijg  Tijg 
hxxXrjaiag  naurjg,  xal  Xenugy  riaavrag  uiiief.i7iT0)g  tw  noifivla 
TO  Xgiqs  ^UETCcjaTTeivocfQoavPyg.  r^ai'^cog  v.ai  6c3ut'ttvao)g,/nsfuaQ- 
TVQT]^usvovg  TS  TtolloXg  XQOPOig  vnb  ndvTOJv,  jtusg  a  dixaicog 
vouilo^uev  hnoSxlaaduv  Tr<g  lenagylag.  '^fiuQiia  yug  u  /tuxgcc 
i^plp  egai,  euv  to?  d.KiE}.iJtjb)g  xul  6u[o)g  Ttgoaeveyxovrag  idc. 
dibga  trig  iTtia}coni]g  dcnoSulw/nev.  C* 


66  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  custom  for  the  presbyters  to  propose  one  to  supply  any 
vacancy  which  occurred ;  but  it  remained  for  the  church 
to  ratify  or  to  reject  the  nomination."  ^5 

TertulHan  in  his  Apology  for  Christians,  against  the 
heathen,  A.  D.  198  or  205,  says  that  the  elders  came  into 
their  office  hy  the  testimony  of  the  people,  that  is,  by  the 
suffrage  or  election  of  the  people.  ^^  Their  free  and  inde- 
pendent suffrages  were  the  highest  testimony  which  the 
people  could  give  of  their  approbation  of  their  elders. 

The  epistles  of  Ignatius,  whether  genuine  or  spurious, 
belong  to  the  period  of  which  we  are  now  treating.  This 
prelatical  writer,  as  we  have  seen  above,  accords  to  the 
church  the  right  of  electing  their  own  delegates. 

Origen,  in  his  last  book  against  Celsus,  about  A.  D.  240, 
speaks  of  the  elders  and  rulers  of  the  churches  as  lals- 
yofxsvov,  chosen  to  their  office.  In  his  sixth  homily  on  Le- 
viticus, he  asserts  that  the  presence  of  the  people  is  required 
in  the  ordination  of  a  priest;  and  the  reason  assigned  for 
their  intervention  is  to  secure  an  impartial  election,  and  the 
appointment  to  this  office  of  one  who  might  possess  the 
highest  qualifications  for  it.  The  whole  passage  implies 
the  active  co-operation  of  the  people  in  the  appointment  of 
their  ministers.  ^^ 

Cyprian,  A.  D.  258,  most  fully  accords  to  the  people  the 
right  of  suffrage  in  the  appointment  of  their  spiritual 
teachers,  declaring  that  they  have  the  fullest  authority  to 
choose  those  who  are  worthy  of  this  office,  and  to  refuse 
such  as  may  be  unworthy.     This,  according  to  this  father, 

'35  Neander,  Allgemein.  Gesch,,  1,  p.  323,  2d  ed. 

36  Praesident  probati  quique  seniores  honorem  istum  non  pretio,  sed 
testimoniO)  adepti. — Apol.,  c.  39. 

37  Requiritur  enim  in  ordinando  sacerdote  et  praesentia  populi  ut 
slant  omnes,  et  certe  sint,  quia  qui  praestantior  est  ex  omni  populo,  qui 
doctior,  qui  sanctior,  qui  in  omni  virtuti  eminentior  —  ille  eligitur  ad 
sacerdotium,  et  hoc  adstantc  populo,  ne  qua  postmodum,  retractatio 
cuiquam,  ne  quis  scrupulus  resideret. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHUKCH.  67 

was  an  apostolic  usage,  preserved  by  a  divine  authority  in 
his  day,  and  observed  throughout  the  churches  of  Africa 
{ayiid  nos),  that  a  pastor,  sacerdos,  should  be  chosen  public- 
ly, in  the  presence  of  the  people  ;  and  that  by  their  decision 
thus  publicly  expressed,  the  candidate  should  be  adjudged 
worthy  to  fill  the  vacant  office,  whether  of  deacon,  presbyter 
or  bishop.  In  accordance  with  these  views,  it  was  his  cus- 
tom, on  all  such  occasions,  to  consult  his  clergy  and  the 
people  before  proceeding  to  ordain  any  one  to  the  office  of 
the  ministry. 38 

So  universal  was  the  right  of  suffrage,  and  so  reasonable, 
that  it  attracted  the  notice  of  the  emperor,  Alexander 
Severus,  who  reigned  from  A.  D.  222  to  235.  In  imitation 
of  the  custom  of  the  Christians  and  Jews,  in  the  appoint- 
ment of  their  priests,  as  he  says,  he  gave  the  people  the 
right  of  rejecting  the  appointment  of  any  procurator,  or 
chief  president  of  the  provinces  whom  he  might  nominate 
to  such  a  office. "^^  Their  votes,  however,  in  these  cases, 
were  not  merely  testimonial,  but  really  judicial  and  elective. 

The  authorities  above  cited  indicate  that  the  suffrages  of 
the  church  were  directed  by  a  previous  nomination  of  the 
clergy.  But  there  are  on  record  instances  in  which  the 
people,  of  their  own  accord,  and  by  acclamation,  elected 
individuals  to  the  office  of  bishop  or  presbyter,  without  any 
previous   nomination.      Ambrose,   bishop    of  Milan,   was 

38  Plebs  obsequens  praeceptis  dominicis  et  Deum  metuens,a  peccatore 
praeposito  separare  se  debet  nee  se  ad  sacrilegi  sacerdotis  sacrificia  miscere, 
quando  ipsa  maxime  habeat  potestatem  vel  eligendi  dignos  sacerdotes,  tit 
indignos  recusandi.  Quod  et  ipsum,  videmus  de  divina  auctoritate  de- 
scendere  ut  sacerdos,  plebepresente,  sub  omnium  occulis  deligatur,  et  dig- 
nus  atque  idoneus  publico  judicio  ac  testimonio  comprobetur,  —  Diligentur, 
de  traditione  divina  et  apostolica  observatione  servandum  est  et  tenendum 
quod  apud  nos  quoque  5  et  fere  per  provincias  universas  tenetur,  ut  ad 
ordinationes  rite  celebrandas  ad  eam  plebem  cui  praepositus  ordinatur, 
episicopi  ejusdem  provinciae  proximi  quique  conveniant  et  episcopus 
deligatur  plebe  praesente.  —  Ep.  68. 

39  Lampridius,  in  vit.  Alexandri  Severi,  c.  45. 


68  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

elected  in  this  manner,  A.  D.  374.^0  Martin,  of  Tours, 
A.  D.  375,  was  appointed  in  the  same  manner.^^  So  also 
were  Eustathius  at  Antioch,  A.  D.  310,42  Chrysostom  at 
Constantinople,  A.  D.  398,«  Eraclius  at  Hippo,44  and  Mi- 
letius  at  Antioch.^^  It  is  also  observable  that  these  examples 
belong  to  a  later  age,  the  fourth  century.  They  are  therefore 
important  as  evidence,  that  people  continued  even  at  this 
late  period  to  retain  their  rights  in  these  popular  elections. 

It  has  been  asserted,  that  the  people  were  denied  the 
right  of  suffrage  by  the  4th  canon  of  the  council  of  Nice. 
But  Bingham  has  clearly  shown  that  the  people  were  not 
excluded  from  their  ancient  privilege  in  this  respect.^^ 
And  both  Riddle,  ^^  and  bishop  Pearson,  as  quoted  by  him., 
concur  with  Bingham  in  opinion  on  this  subject.  Indeed 
the  assertion  is  sufficiently  refuted,  by  the  fact,  that  Atha- 
nasius,  bishop  of  Alexandria,  and  others,  were  elected  by 
popular  vote  immediately  after  the  session  of  that  council. 

Daille  sums  up  the  evidence  on  this  subject  in  thefollowing 
terms :  —  "It  is  clear  that  in  the  primitive  times  they  [popu- 
lar elections  and  ordinations]  depended  partly  on  the  people, 
and  not  wholly  on  the  clei:gy ;  but  every  company,  of  the 
faithful  either  chose  their  own  pastors,  or  else  had  leave  to 
consider  and  to  approve  of  those  that  were  proposed  to 
them  for  that  purpose.  Pontius,  a  deacon  of  the  church 
of  Carthage,  says  that  '  St.  Cyprian,  being  yet  a  neophyte, 
was  elected  to  the  charge  of  pastor,  and  the  degree  of 
bishop  by  the  judgment  of  God,  and  the  favor  of  the  peo- 
ple.''*^     St.   Cyprian    also  tells  us    the    same    in  several 

40  Paulin.,  vit.  Ambros  5  Rufin.,  Hist.  Eccl.,  Lib.  2,  c.  11 ;  Theodoret,  Hist. 
Eccl.,  Lib.  4,  c.  6,  p.  666 ;  Sozomen,  Hist.  Eccl.,  Lib.  6,  c.  24. 

41  Sulpic,  Sev.,  Vit.  e.  Martini,  c.7.  42  Theodoret,  Hist.,Eccl.,Lib.l,  c.6. 
-   43  Socrat.,  Hist.  EccL,  Lib.  6,  c.  2.  44  Augustin.,  4,  Ep.  110,  al.  213. 

45  Theodoret,  Hist.  Eccl.,  Lib.  2,  c.  27, 

46Book4,  chap.  2;  §  11.  47  Christ.  Antiq.,  p.  286. 

43  Judicio  Dei,  et  plebis  favore,  ad  ofFicium  sacerdotii,  et  episcopatus 
gradum  adhuc  neophytus,ut  putabatur,  novellus  electus  est.  —  Pont.  Diac. 
in  vita  Cypr. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  69 

places.  In  his  52nd  epistle,  speaking  of  Cornelius,  he  says, 
'That  he  was  made  bishop  of  Rome  by  the  judgment  of 
God,  and  of  his  Christ,  by  the  testimony  of  the  greatest 
part  of  the  clergy,  by  the  suffrage  of  the  people  who  were 
there  present,  and  by  the  college  of  pastors,  or  ancient 
bishops,  all  good  and  pious  men.'^^ 

"  It  appears  clear  enough,  both  out  of  St.  Hierome,^^  and 
by  the  acts  of  the  council  of  Constantinople,^!  and  of 
Chalcedon,52  ^^d  also  by  the  Pontificale  Romanump  and 
several  other  productions,  that  this  custom  continued  a 
long  time  in  the  church." 

This  right  in  question  is  clearly  admitted  even  in  the 
Roman  pontifical,  in  which  the  bishop,  at  the  ordination  of 
a  priest,  is  made  to  say,  "  It  was  not  without  good  reason 
that  the  fathers  had  ordained  that  the  ad^dce  of  the  people 
should  be  taken  in  the  election  of  those  persons  who  were 
to  serve  at  the  altar ;  to  the  end  that  having  given  their 
assent  to  their  ordination  they  might  the  more  readily  yield 
obedience  to  those  who  were  so  ordained."^'*  This  pas- 
sage is  cited  by  Daille,  who  remarks,  that  an  honest  canon 
of  Valencia  very  gravely  proposed  to  the  council  of  Trent, 
that  this,  and  all  such  authorities  should  be  blotted  out ;  so 
that  no  trace  or  footstep  of  them  should  remain  in  future 

49  Factus  est  autem  Cornelius  episcopus,  de  Dei  et  Christi  ejus  judicio, 
■  de  clericorum  pene  omnium  testimonio,  de  plebis,  quae  tunc  affluit  sufFragio, 
et  de  sacerdotum  antiquorum,  et  bonorum  virorum  collegio.  —  Cyprian, 
Ep.  52,  p.  97. 

&o  Hieron.,  Com.  10,  in  Ezech.,  c.  33,  Tom.  Ill,,  p.  935,  et.  Com.  in  Agg., 
p.  512,  t.  5.  et  Com.  1,  in  Ep.  ad  Gal.,  p.  271,  t.  6. 

51  Cone.  Const.,  I,  in  Ep.  ad  Damas.,  p.  94  et  95,  t.  1,  Cone.  Gener. 
.     S2  Cone.  Chalced.,  act  ll',  p.  375,  t.  2.  Cone.  Gen.,  et  act.  16,  p.  430,  &lc. 

53  Pontific.  Rom.  in  Ordinat.  Presbyter.,  fol.  38,  vide  supr.  I.  1,  c.  4. 

5-*  JNeque  enim  frustra  a  patribus  institutum,  ut  de  electione  illorum  qui 
ad  regimen  altaris  adhibendi  sunt,  consulatur  consulatur  etiam  populus ; 
quia  de  vita  et  conversatione  praesentandi,  quod  nonnunquam  ignoratur  a 
pluribus,  scitur  a  paucis  5  et  necesse  est,  et  facilius  ei  quis  obedientiam 
exhibeat  ordinatio  cui  assensum  praebuerit  ordinando.  —  Foniif.  Rom.  De 
Ordinat.  Prcs.,  fol  38. 


70  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

for  heretics  to  bring  against  them  for  having  taken  away 
this  right ! 

Bingham,^^  ^nd  Chancellor  King,^^  and  multitudes  of 
the  most  respectable  writers  in  the  communion  of  the  Epis- 
copal church,  fully  sustain  the  foregoing  representations  of 
the  right  of  suffrage  as  enjoyed  by  the  primitive  churches. 
They  are  clearly  supported  by  the  late  Dr.  Burton,^'''  and 
by  Riddle,  both  of  Oxford  University,  and  by  the  best  au- 
thorities both  ancient  and  modern.  "  The  mode  of  ap- 
pointing bishops  and  presbyters,"  says  Riddle,  "has  been 
repeatedly  changed.  Election  by  the  people,  for  instance, 
has  been  discontinued.  This  is  indeed,  in  the  estimation 
of  Episcopalians,  a  great  improvement,  but  still,  as  they 
must  allow,  it  is  a  change."  ^^ 

For  what  term  of  time  the  several  churches  continued 
in  the  full  enjoyment  of  the  right  of  suffrage,  we  are  not 
distinctly  informed.  We  can  only  say  with  Mosheim, 
"  This  power  of  appointing  their  elders  continued  to  be 
exercised  by  the  members  of  the  church  at  large  as  long 
as  primitive  manners  were  retained  entire ;  and  those  who 
ruled  over  the  churches  did  not  conceive  themselves  at  lib- 
erty to  introduce  any  deviation  from  the  apostolic  model."  ^^ 
The  reader  will  find  an  able  discussion  of  this  whole  sub- 
ject, also,  and  an  extended  collection  of  authorities  in 
Blondell's  treatise,  De  Plebis  in  Electionibus  jure.*^^ 

II.  Abridgement  and  final  extinction  of  the  right  of 
suffrage. 

Various  causes  began,  as  early  as  the  third  century,  to 
invade  the  sovereign  rights  of  the  people,  and  to  embarrass 
their  free  elective  franchise.  The  final  result  of  these 
changes  was  a  total  disfranchisement  of  the  laity,  and  the 

55  Book  4,  c.  G.  56  Part  T,  c.  3  —  c.  6. 

67  Church  History,  c.  12.  ss  Christ.  Antiq.,  Preface,  p.  76. 

59  De  Rebus,  Christ.  Saec,  1,  §  39. 

60  Apologia  pro.  St.  Hieron.,  pp.  379  —  549. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  71 

substitution  of  an  ecclesiastical  despotism,  in  the  place  of 
the  elective  government  of  the  primitive  church.  Of 
these  changes  one  of  the  most  effective  was  the  attempt, 
by  means  of  correspondence  and  ecclesiastical  synods,  to 
consolidate  the  churches  in  one  church  universal,  to  impose 
upon  them  an  uniform  code  of  laws,  and  establish  an 
ecclesiastical  polity  administered  by  the  clergy.  The  idea 
of  a  holy  catholic  church,  and  of  an  ecclesiastical  hierarchy 
for  the  government  of  the  same,  was  wholly  a  conception 
of  the  priesthood.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  motives 
with  which  the  doctrine  of  the  unity  of  the  church  was 
promulgated,  it  prepared  the  way  for  the  overthrow  of  the 
popular  government  of  the  church. 

Above  all,  the  doctrine  of  the  divine  right  of  the  priest- 
hood aimed  a  fatal  blow  at  the  liberties  of  the  people.  The 
clergy  were  no  longer  the  servants  of  the  people,  chosen 
by  them  to  the  work  of  the  ministry,  but  a  privileged  order, 
like  the  Levitical  priesthood,  and,  like  them,  by  divine 
right  invested  with  peculiar  prerogatives.  Elate  with  the 
pride  of  their  divine  commission,  a  degenerate  and  aspiring 
priesthood  sought,  by  every  means,  to  make  themselves 
independent  of  the  suffrages  of  the  people.  This  indepen- 
dence they  began  by  degrees  to  assert  and  to  exercise.  The 
bishop  began,  in  the  third  century,  to  appoint  his  own 
deacons  at  pleasure,  and  other  inferior  orders  of  the  clergy. 
In  other  appointments,  also,  his  efforts  began  to  disturb  the 
freedom  of  the  elections,  and  to  direct  them  agreeably  to 
his  own  will.^i 

And  yet  Cyprian,  only  about  fifty  years  before,  apolo- 
gized to  the  laity  and  clergy  of  his  diocese  for  appointing 
one  Auretius  to  the  office  of  reader.  In  justification  of 
this  measure,  he  pleads  the  extraordinary  virtues  of  the 
candidate,  the  urgent  necessity  of  the  case,  and  the  impos- 
es Pertsch.  Kirch.  Gesch.  drit.  Jahrhund.,  pp.  439—452.  Planck, 
Gesell.  Verfassung,  1,  183. 


72  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

sibility  of  consulting  them,  as  he  was  wont  to  do  on  all 
such  occasions. 62  Such  Avas  the  progress  of  Episcopal 
usurpation  within  the  short  period  of  half  a  century.  By 
the  middle  of  the  fourth  century,  elections  by  the  people 
were  nearly  lost  -p  and  from  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  cen- 
tury, the  bishop  proceeded  to  claim  the  appointment  even 
of  the  presbyters,  together  with  the  absolute  control  of 
all  ecclesiastical  offices  subordinate  to  his  own  episcopate. 
But.  down  to  the  fourth  century,  the  bishops  were  not  at 
liberty  ever  to  license  one  to  perform  the  duties  of  a  pres- 
byter, w^ithout  first  obtaining  the  approbation  of  the  people. 
Such  at  least  was  still  the  rule  in  many  places.^^ 

Against  these  encroachments  of  ecclesiastical  ambition 
and  power,  the  people  continued  to  oppose  a  firm  but  inef- 
fectual resistance.  They  asserted,  and  in  a  measure 
maintained,  their  primitive  right  of  choosing .  their  own 
spiritual  teachers.^s  The  usage  of  the  churches  of  Africa 
has  been  already  mentioned.  Examples  are  given  by 
Bohmer,^^  in  evidence  that  this  rite  was  still  observed 
in  the  churches  of  Spain- and  of  Rome.^^  Later  still,  in 
the  fourth  century,  an  instance  occurred  in  the  Eastern 
church  in  Cappadocia,  of  the  controlling  influence  of  these 
popular  elections.     The  people,  after  having  been  divided 

62  In  ordinationibus  clericis,  Fratres  carissimi,  solemus  vos  ante  con- 
sulere,  et  mores  ac  merita  singulorum,  communi  consilio  penderari. 
Ep.-33. 

63  Pertsch.,  4,  Jahrhund.,  p.  263. 

64  Riddle's  Eccl.  Chron.,  A.  D.  400.  Planck,  Vol.  I,  p."  183.  Euseb. 
Eccl.  Hist.,  6;  45. 

65  Gieseler,  Vol.  I,  272.  For  a  more  full  and  detailed  account  of  these 
changes  of  ecclesiastical  polity,  and  of  the  means  by  which  they  were 
introduced,  the  reader  is  referred  to  the  first  volume  of  J.  G.  Planck's 
Gesch.  der  Christ.  Kirch.,  Gesellschaft-Verfassung,  Bd.  I,  149—212,  433, 
seq. 

66  Christ.  Kirch.  Alterthumswissenschaft,  I,  p.  144,  seq. 

67  Presbyterio  vel  episcopatui,  si  eum  cleri  ac  plebis  rocaverit  electio, 
non  immerito  societur. — Siricius,  bishop  of  Rome,  A.  D.  384.  Ep.  I,  ad 
Himer.,  c.  10. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  73 

in  their  choice  between  different  candidates,  united  their 
suffrages  in  the  election  of  an  individual  high  in  office  in 
the  state,  who  had  not  even  been  baptized.  He  accordingly- 
received  this  ordinance  at  the  hands  of  the  bishops  present, 
and  was  duly  invested  with  his  office.  In  the  Western 
church,  the  election  of  Martin  of  Tours,  A.  D.  375,  above- 
mentioned,  was  carried  by  the  popular  voice,  against  the 
decided  disapprobation  of  the  bishops  present.  Ambrose, 
bishop  of  Milan,  A.  D.  374,  was  also  appointed  by  the 
unanimous  acclamation  of  the  multitude,  previous  even  to 
his  baptism.  On  the  other  hand,  there  are  on  record, 
instances  in  the  fourth,  and  even  in  the  fifth  century,  when 
the  appointment  of  a  bishop  was  effectually  resisted,  by  the 
refusal  of  the  people  to  ratify  the  nomination  of  the  candi- 
date to  a  vacant  see.^^ 

But  notwithstanding  all  these  examples,  in  which  the 
people  successfully  asserted  their  ancient  right  of  suffrage,  it 
became,  as  early  as  the  fifth  century,  little  else  than  an  empty 
name.  Their  elections  degenerated  into  a  tumultuous  and 
unequal  contest  with  a  crafty  and  aspiring  hierarchy,  who- 
had  found  means  so  to  trammel  up  and  control  the  elective 
franchise,  as  practically  to  direct,-  at  pleasure,  all  ecclesi- 
astical appointments.  The  rule  had  been  established  by 
decree  of  council,  and  often  repeated,  requiring  the  presence 
and  unanimous  concurrence  of  all  the  'provincial  bishops  in 
the  election  and  ordination  of  one  to  the  office  of  bishop.. 
This  afforded  them  a  convenient  means  of  defeating  any 
popular  election,  by  an  affected  disagreement  among  them- 
selves. The  same  canonical  authority  had  made  the  con- 
currence of  the  metropolitan  necessary  to  the  validity  of 
any  appointment.  His  veto  was  accordingly  another 
efficient  expedient  to  baffle  the  suffrages  of  the  people,  and 

68  Greg.  Naz.,  Orat.  10.     Bingham^  B.  IV,  c.  1 ,  ^  3.    Planck,  I;  440,  n.  10. 
7 


74  THE    PRBIITIVE    CHURCH. 

to  constrain  them  into  a  reluctant  acquiescence  with  the 
will  of  the  clergy. *^9 

Elections  to  ecclesiastical  offices  were  also  disturbed 
by  the  interference  of  secular  influence  from  without,  in 
consequence  of  that  disastrous  union  of  church  and  state, 
which  was  formed  in  the  fourth  century,  under  Constantine 
the  Great. 

"  During  this  century,"  the  fourth,  "  1.  The  emperors 
convened,  and  presided  in,  general  councils ;  2.  Confirmed 
their  decrees ;  3.  Enacted  laws  relative  to  ecclesiastical 
matters  by  their  own  authority ;  4.  Pronounced  decisions 
concerning  heresies  and  controversies ;  5.  Appointed  bish- 
ops; 6.  Inflicted  punishment  on  ecclesiastical  persons. 

"  Hence  arose  complaints  that  the  bishops  had  conceded 
too  much  to  the  emperors,  while,  on  the  other  hand,  some 
persons  maintained  that  the  emperors  had  left  too  much 
on  the  hands  of  the  bishops.  The  bishops  certainly  did 
possess  too  much  power  and  influence,  to  the  prejudice  of 
the  other  clergy,  and  especially  to  the  disadvantage  of 
Christians  at  large. 

"  Thus  the  emperor  and  the  bishops  share  the  chief 
government  of  the  church  between  them.  But  the  limits 
of  their  authority  were  not  well  defined.  Great  part  of 
tlie  power  formerly  possessed  by  the  general  body  of 
Christians,  the  laity,  had  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  civil 
governor."  '^^ 

Agitated  and  harrassed  by  these  discordant  elements, 
the  popular  assemblies  for  the  election  of  men  to  fill  the 
highest  offices  of  the  holy  ministry,  became  scenes  of 
tumult  and  disorder  that  would  disgrace  a  modern  political 
canvass.     "  Go  and  witness  the  proceedings  at  our  public 

69  Cone.  Nic.  c.  4.   Cone.  Antioch,  c.  19.    Carthag.  IV,  c.  1, 22.    Planck, 
Vol.  I,  pp.  433—452. 
'0  Riddle's  Chronology,  pp.  70,  71. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  75 

festivals,  especially  those  in  which,  according  to  rule,  the 
elections  of  ecclesiastical  officers  are  held.  One  supports 
one  man,  another,  another,  and  the  reason  is,  that  all  over- 
look that  which  they  ought  to  consider,  the  qualifications, 
intellectual  and  moral,  of  the  candidate.  Their  attention 
is  turned  to  other  points,  by  which  their  choice  is  deter- 
mined. One  is  in  favor  of  a  candidate  of  noble  birth ; 
another,  of  a  man  of  wealth,  who  will  not  need  to  be  sup- 
ported by  the  revenues  of  the  church;  a  third  votes  for  one 
who  has  come  over  from  some  opposite  party ;  a  fourth 
gives  his  influence  in  favor  of  some  relative  or  friend; 
while  another  is  gained  by  the  flatteries  of  a  demagogue." "^^ 
Repeated  notices  of  similar  disturbances  occur  in  the  eccle- 
siastical writers  of  that  period.'''^ 

To  correct  these  disorders,  various  but  ineffectual  expe- 
dients were  adopted  at  different  times  and  places.  The 
council  of  Laodicea,  A.  D.  361,  c.  13,  excluded  the  multi- 
tude, Tolg  oxloig,  the  rabble,  from  taking  part  in  the  choice 
of  persons  for  the  sacred  office,  apparently  with  the  design 
of  preventing  these  abuses,  without  excluding  the  better 
portion  of  the  laymen  from  participating  in  these  elections. 
The  expedient,  however,  produced  but  little  eflfect. 

In  the  Latin  church,  and  especially  in  that  of  Africa,  an 
attempt  was  made  to  restore  order  and  simplicity  in  these 
elections  by  means  of  interventors,  or  visitors,  whose  duty 
it  was  to  visit  the  vacant  diocese,  and  use  his  influence 
with  the  clergy  and  people  to  harmonize  their  discordant 

71  Pe  Sacerdot.,  Lib.  3,  c.  15. 

72  August.,  Ep.  155.  Synessii,  Ep.  67.  Sidon,  Apollinar.,  Lib.  IV,  Ep.  25, 
and  other  passages  collected  by  Baronius,  Annal.,  303,  ft.  22,  seq.,  and  in 
Baluzii  MiscelL,  torn.  2.  Ammianus  Marcellinus  gives  the  following  rep- 
resentation of  the  unholy  contests  of  the  two  rival  candidates,  Damasus 
and  Ursinus,  for  appointment  to  the  Episcopal  see  at  Rome : — "  Supra 
humanum  modum  aud  rapiendam  episcopatus  sedem  ardentes,  scissis 
studiis  asperrime  conflicta  bantur,  ad  usque  mortis,  vulnerumque  discrimina 
adjumentis  utriusque  progressis.  Et  in  certatione  superaverat  Damasus 
parte  quae  ec  favelat  instante."— JLi6.  28,  Ep.  3. 


76  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

interests,  and  prepare  the  way  for  a  quiet  and  regular  elec- 
tion. By  this  means,  the  visitor  had  a  fair  opportunity,  as 
Bingham  justly  remarks,  "  to  ingratiate  himself  with  the 
people,  and  promote  his  own  interest  among  them,  instead 
of  that  of  the  church. "^^  This  measure,  though  supported 
by  Symmachus,^'*  in  the  sixth  century,  and  by  Gregory  the 
Great,'^^  failed  to  produce  the  desired  effect;  and  seems 
neither  to  have  been  generally  adopted  nor  long  con- 
tinued. 

Justinian,  in  the  sixth  century,  sought,  with  no  better 
success,  to  remedy  the  evils  in  question,  by  limiting  the 
elective  franchise  to  a  mixed  aristocracy,  composed  of  the 
clergy,  and  the  chief  men  of  the  city.  These  were  jointly 
to  nominate  three  candidates,  declaring  under  oath,  that,  in 
making  the  selection,  they  had  been  influenced  by  no  sinis- 
ter motive.  From  these  three  the  ordaining  person  was  to 
ordain  the  one  whom  he  judged  best  qualified.^6  g^t  it 
was  not  defined  who  should  be  included  among  the  chief 
men,  and  the  result  was  the  loss  of  the  people's  rights,  and 
an  increase  of  the  factions  which  the  measure  was  intended 
to  prevent.  The  council  of  Aries,  A.  D.  452,  c.  54,  in  like 
manner,  ordered  the  bishops  to  nominate  three  candidates^ 
from  whom  the  clergy  and  the  people  should  make  the 
election;  and  that  of  Barcelona,  A.  D.  593,  ordered  the 
clergy  and  people  to  make  the  nomination,  and  the  metro- 
politan and  bishops  were  to  determine  the  election  by  lot. 

But  even  these  ineffectual  efforts  to  restore,  in  some 
measure,  the  right  of  the  people,  sufficiently  show  to  what 
extent  it  was  already  lost.  Indeed,  the  bishops  had  already 
assumed,  in  some  instances,  the  independent  and  exclusive 
right  themselves   of  appointing  spiritual  officersJ'^     The 

73  Book  II,  c.  15,  §  1.    Comp.  Book  IV,  c.  11,  §  7. 

74  Ep.  b,  c.  6.  75  Ep.  Lib.  9.    Ep.  16. 

76  Justin,  Novell.,  123,  c.  1,  137,  c.  2d.  Cod.  Lib.  1,  tit.  3.  De  Episcop. 
leg.  42.  77  Sidon,  Apollinar.,  Lib.  IV,  Ep.  25. 


ELECTIONS    BY    THE    CHURCH.  77* 

emperor  Valentinian  III  complains  of  Hilary  of  Aries,  that 
he  unworthily  ordained  some  in  direct  opposition  to  the  will 
of  the  people ;  and  when  they  refused  those  whom  they 
had  not  chosen,  that  he  contracted  an  armed  body,  and  by 
military  power  forcibly  thrust  into  office  the  ministers  of 
the  gospel  of  peace  J^  Leo  the  Great,  A.  D.  450,  asserts 
the  right  of  the  people  to  elect  their  spiritual  rulers.'''^ 

The  government  of  the  church,  from  a  pure  democracy, 
had  changed,  first  into  an  ambitious  aristocracy,  and  then 
into  a  more  oppressive  oligarchy,  who,  assuming  practically 
the  sentiment  of  a  crafty  tyrant,  oin  (xyaOuv  nolvnoiQavlrj,^^ 
directed  their  assaults  against  the  most  sacred  principle 
both  of  civil  and  religious  liberty, — the  right  of  every  cor- 
porate body  to  choose  their  own  rulers  and  teachers.  This 
extinction  of  religious  freedom  was  not  effected  in  the 
church  universally  at  the  same  time,  nor  in  every  place  by 
the  same  means.  Oppressed  by  violence,  overreached  by 
stratagem,  or  awed  into  submission  by  superstition,  the 
churches  severally  yielded  the  contest  at  different  and  some- 
what distant  intervals.  In  Rome,  the  rights  of  the  people 
were  recognized  under  Ccelestia,  A.  D.  422,^1  and  Leo  the 
Great,  A.  D.  440,  which,  as  we  have  seen,  Justinian  at- 
tempted to  restore  in  the  century  following.  In  Gaul,  these 
rights  were  not  wholly  lost  until  the  fifth,^^  ^^d  even  the 
sixth  century.S3 

The  doctrine  of  a  divine  guidance  from  the  Spirit  of  God 
to  the  clergy,  had  its  influence  also  in  completing  the  sub- 
jugation of  the  people.     This  vain  conceit,  by  ceaseless 

78  Valentinian  III,  JNov.  XXIV,  ad  calcem  Cod.  Theodos. 

79  Qui  praefecturus  omnibus,  ab  omnibus  eligatur.     Ep.  89.     Comp.  Ep. 
84,  c.  5. 

80  Iliad,  II,  204.    Paraphrased  by  Pope,  in  the  following  lines  : 

Be  silent,  wretch,  and  think  not  here  allowed 
That  worst  of  tyrants,  an  usurping  crowd. — Pope. 

81  Ep.  2,  c.  5.  82  sidon,  Apollinar.,  Lib.  IV,  Ep.  25. 
83  Cone.  Orleans,  A.  D.  549,  c.  10. 

7:^ 


78  THE    PRBIITIVE    CHURCH. 

repetition  of  bishops  and  councils,  became  an  unquestion- 
able dogma  of  the  church.  Once  established,  it  had  great 
influence  in  bringing  the  people  into  passive  submission  to 
their  spiritual  oppressors.  Resistance  to  such  authority 
under  the  infallible  guidance  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  was 
rebellion  against  high  heaven,  which  the  laity  had  not  the 
impiety  to  maintain. 

"  Thus  every  thing  was  changed  in  the  church.  At  the 
beginning  it  was  a  society  of  brethren ;  and  now  an  abso- 
lute monarchy  is  reared  in  the  midst  of  them.  All  Chris- 
tians were  priests  of  the  living  God,  1  Pet.  2 :  9,  with 
humble  pastors  for  their  guidance.  But  a  lofty  head  is 
uplifted  from  the  midst  of  these  pastors.  A  mysterious 
voice  utters  words  full  of  pride ;  an  iron  hand  compels  all 
men,  small  and  great,  rich  and  poor,  freemen  and  slaves,  to 
take  the  mark  of  its  power.  The  holy  and  primitive 
equality  of  souls  is  lost  sight  of.  Christians  are  divided 
into  two  strangely  unequal  classes.  On  the  one  side,  a 
separate  class  of  priests  daring  to  usurp  the  name  of  the 
church,  and  claiming  to  be  possessed  of  peculiar  privi- 
leges in  the  sight  of  the  Lord.  On  the  other,  timid  flocks, 
reduced  to  a  blind  and  passive  submission ;  a  people  gagged 
and  silenced,  and  delivered  over  to  a  proud  caste."  ^^ 

The  interference  of  the  secular  power  with  ecclesiastical 
appointments  has  been  already  mentioned.  The  civil 
magistrate  often  exercised  the  same  arbitrary  power  in 
these  matters  which  the  priesthood  had  usurped  over  the 
people,  so  that  the  oppressor  became  in  turn  the  oppressed. 
This  secular  interference  began  with  Constantino.  Both 
in  the  Eastern  and  the  Western  church,  it  was  often  the 
means  of  disturbing  and  overruling  the  appointment  of 
ecclesiastical  officers,  and  finally  itself  completed  the  ex- 
tinction of  religious  liberty.  Valentinian  III,  A.  D.  445, 
for  example,  enacted,  that  all  bishops  of  the  Western  em- 

84  D'Aubigne's  Hist,  of  the  Reformation,  I,  p.  31. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  79 

pire  should  obey  the  bishop  of  Rome,  and  should  be  boand 
to  appear  before  him  at  his  summons.  ^^  Constantius 
appointed  Liberius  bishop  of  Rome,  A.  D.  352,  and  the 
Gothic  kings  in  the  sixth  century  exercised  the  same 
arbitrary  power  over  the  churches  of  France  and  Spain. ^^ 

In  the  Eastern  church,  Theodosius  I  also  appointed 
Nectarius  bishop  of  Constantinople,  A.  D.  381,8'i'  and  Theo- 
dosius II,  in  the  same  summary  manner,  appointed  Proilus, 
A.  D.  434,  to  succeed  Maximian  in  the  same  place.  The 
church  sometimes  protested  with  great  vehemence  against 
these  encroachments  of  secular  power,  of  which  we  have  a 
remarkable  example  in  the  sixth  canon  of  the  council  of 
Paris,  A.  D.  557.  "  Seeing  that  ancient  custom  and  the 
regulations  of  the  church  are  neglected,  we  desire  that  no 
bishop  be  consecrated  against  the  will  of  the  citizens. 
And  only  such  person  shall  be  considered  eligible  to  this 
dignity,  who  may  be  appointed,  not  by  command  of  the 
prince,  but  by  the  election  of  the  people  and  clergy;  which 
election  must  be  confirmed  by  the  metropolitan  and  the 
other  bishops  of  the  province.  Any  one  who  may  enter 
upon  this  office  by  the  mere  authority  of  the  king,  shall 
not  be  recognized  by  the  other  bishops ;  and  if  any  bishop 
should  recognize  him,  he  must  himself  be  deposed  from  his 
office."  88  The  eighth  council  of  Rome,  also,  A.  D.  853, 
forbade,  on  pain  of  excommunication,  "  all  lay  persons 
whatsoever,  even  princes  themselves,  to  meddle  in  the 
election  or  promotion  of  any  patriarch,  metropolitan,  or  any 
other  bishop  whatever,  declaring  withal,  that  it  is  not  fit 
that  lay  persons  should  have  any  thing  at  all  to  do  in  these 
matters ;  it  becoming  them  rather  to  be  quiet,  and  patiently 
to  attend  until  such  time  as  the  election  of  the  bishop  who 

85  RidcQe's  Eccl.  Chron.,  p.  103. 

86  Simonis,  Vorlesungen  aber  die  Christlichen,  Allerthamer,  p.  106. 

87  Bohmer's  Alterthumswissenschaft,  Vol.  I,  p.  151. 

88  Cone.  Paris,  c.  8. 


&&t  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

is  to  be  chosen,  be  regularly  finished  by  the  college  of  the 
church."  89 

Such  demands  for  the  institution  of  apostolical  and 
canonical  elections^  as  they  were  caUed,^^  were,  however, 
but  rarely  made,  and  never  with  success.  The  clergy 
were  brought  to  bow  down  to  an  usurpation  more  absolute 
and  despotic  than  that  by  which  they  at  first  wrested  from 
the  laity  the  rights,  which,  in  their-  turn,  they  were  com- 
pelled so  reluctantly  to  resign  to  the  secular  power,  until  at 
length  the  pope,  that  prince  of  tyrants,  became  the  supreme 
arbiter  of  all  power,  whether  ecclesiastical  or  secular.  In- 
nocent III,  at  the  close  of  the  twelfth  century,  described  him- 
self as  "  the  successor  of  St.  Peter,  set  up  by  God  to  govern 
not  only  the  church  but  the  whole  world.  As  God,"  said 
he,  "  has  placed  two  great  luminaries  in  the  firmament,  the 
one  to  rule  the  day,  and  the  other  to  give  light  by  night,  so 
has  he  established  two  great  powers,  the  pontifical  and  the 
royal ;  and  as  the  moon  receives  her  light  from  the  sun,  so 
does  royalty  borrow  its  splendor  from  the  papal  authority  I" 


REMARKS. 

The  right  of  suffrage  involves  the  great  principles  and 
rights  of  a  popular  government.  These. rights  and  privi- 
leges the  apostles,  under  the  guidance  of  wisdom  from  on 
high,  studiously  sought  to  protect,  in  framing  the  constitu- 
tion and  government  which  they  gave  to  the  churches ;  as 
the  following  remarks  may  serve  to  show. 

89  JSTeminen  laicorum  principum,  vel  Potentum  semet  inserere  election! 
vel  promotioni  Patriarchae,  vel  MetropolitaB^  aut  cujuslibet  episcopi,  &c. 
praesei-tim  cum  null  am  in  talibus  potestatem  quenquam  potestativorum,  vel 
ceterorum  laicorum  habere  conveniat,  sed  potius  silere,  ac  attendere  sibi, 
usque  qu6  regulariter  a  collegio  ecclesise  suscipiat  finem  electio  futuri 
pontificis.— Cone.  8.  Con.  12,  t.  3,  Cone.  p.  282. 

90  Gregory  Naz.^  Orat.  21. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  §1 

1.  The  right  of  suffrage  is  the  first  element  of  a  popular 
government,  in  the  church. 

The  right  to  elect  our  rulers  and  teachers,  involves  the 
right  to  adopt  our  own  form  of  government,  to  frame  our 
constitution,  to  enact  our  laws ;  to  exercise  the  prerogatives 
and  enjoy  the  privileges  of  a  free  and  independent  body. 
The  enjoyment  of  this  right,  is  freedom;  the  loss  of  it, 
slavery. 

2.  The  right  to  elect  their  own  pastors  and  teachers  is 
the  inherent  right  of  every  church. 

If  it  be  true,  that  all  men  are  endowed,  by  their  Creator, 
with  certain  unalienable  rights,  among  which  are  "  life, 
liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness,"  then  much  more  is 
liberty  of  conscience,  and  the  pursuit  of  future  blessedness, 
the  inherent,  unalienable  right  of  man.  What  is  the  life 
that  now  is,  to  that  which  is  to  come  ;  or  the  happiness  of 
earth,  to  the  bliss  of  heaven  ?  Such  are  the  religious  to 
the  civil  rights  of  any  people,  all  of  which  are  involved 
in  the  enjoyment  of  the  elective  franchise,  and  lost  to  a 
disfranchised  laity.  This  consideration  was  lately  urged 
in  the  hearing  of  the  writer,  with  great  pertinency  and 
force,  by  a  speaker  in  the  House  of  Lords,  on  a  motion 
relating  to  the  religious  liberty  of  the  church  of  Scotland. 
"  The  choice  of  a  pastor,"  the  noble  marquis  proceeded  to 
say,  "was  really  a  measure  of  more  importance,  and,  by  the 
members  of  that  church,  was  regarded  as  an  event  more 
interesting  than  the  election  of  a  member  of  Parliament ; 
for  it  affected  their  religious  interests, — interests,  to  them 
and  to  their  children,  high  as  heaven,  and  lasting  as 
eternity." 

3.  The  right  of  suffrage  preserves  a  just  balance  of  power 
between  the  church  and  clerical  order,  —  the  laity  and  the 
clergy.      The  sacred  office  of  the  clergy,  coupled  with 


82  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

learning  and  talents,  gives  them,  under  any  form  of  gov- 
ernment, a  controlling  influence.  If  to  all  this  be  added 
the  exclusive  right  of  making  and  executing  the  laws,  and . 
of  electing  the  officers,  the  balance  of  power  between  the 
clergy  and  the  people  is  destroyed.  The  restraints  and 
checks  which  the  clergy  ought  to  feel  against  the  exercise 
of  arbitrary  power  are  removed.  The  history  of  the  church 
sufficiently  shows  that  the  dangerous  prerogatives  of  pre- 
latical  power  cannot,  with  safety,  be  entrusted  to  any  body 
of  men,  however  great  or  good.  Accordingly,  as  in  all  free 
governments,  the  sovereign  power  is  vested  in  the  people, 
so  in  the  primitive  church,  this  great  law  of  religious  as 
well  as  of  civil  liberty  was  carefully  observed.  The  people 
were  made  the  depositaries  of  the  sovereign  power.  The 
enactment  of  the  laws  and  the  appointment  of  their  officers 
belonged  to  them.^i 

4.  The  loss  of  this  right  is  the  extinction  of  religious 
liberty. 

The  free  Church  of  Scotland,  by  their  late  secession, 
have  had  the  magnanimity  to  resign  the  heritage  of  their 
fathers,  and  to  go  out  from  the  sanctuary  where  their  fathers 
worshipped,  taking  joyfully  the  spoiling  of  their  goods, 
rather  than  submit  to  the  loss  of  their  religious  rights.  In 
the  manifesto,  which  they  have  published,  as  their  declara- 
tion of  independence,  they  complain  that  their  religious 
liberty  has  been  invaded  by  the  civil  courts ;  whereas  the 
church  of  Christ  is,  and  of  right  ought  to  be,  free,  and  in- 
dependent of  all  spiritual  jurisdiction  from  the  state.  We 
subjoin  an  extract  from  this  manifesto,  which  clearly  sets 
forth  the  wrongs  that  they  must  suffer  under  this  spiritual 
bondage  to  which  they  have  nobly  refused  to  bow  down 
themselves.  The  specification  of  their  grievances  is  made 
in  the  following  terms  : 

91  Riddle,  Eccl.  Chr.,  p.  13.  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  5,  24. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  83 

1.  That  the  "courts  of  the  church  as  now  established, 
and  members  thereof,  are  liable  to  be  coerced  by  the  civil 
courts  in  the  exercise  of  their  spiritual  functions ;  and  in 
particular,  in  their  admission  to  the  office  of  the  holy 
ministry,  and  the  constitution  of  the  pastoral  relation,  and 
that  they  are  subject  to  be  compelled  to  intrude  ministers 
on  reclaiming  congregations  in  opposition  to  the  funda- 
mental principles  of  the  church,  and  their  views  of  the 
word  T)f  God,  and  to  the  liberties  of  Christ's  people. 

2.  That  the  said  civil  courts  have  power  to  interfere 
with  and  interdict  the  preaching  of  the  gospel,  and  admin- 
istration of  ordinances  as  authorized  and  enjoined  by  the 
church  courts  of  the  establishment. 

3.  That  the  said  civil  courts  have  power  to  suspend 
spiritual  censures  pronounced  by  the  church  courts  of 
the  establishment  against  ministers  and  probationers  of 
the  church,  and  to  interdict  their  execution  as  to  spiritual 
effects,  functions,  and  privileges. 

4.  That  the  said  civil  courts  have  power  to  reduce  and 
set  aside  the  sentences  of  tlie  church  courts  of  the  estab- 
lishment, deposing  ministers  from  the  office  of  the  holy 
ministry,  and  depriving  probationers  of  their  license  to 
preach  the  gospel,  with  reference  to  the  spiritual  status, 
functions,  and  privileges  of  such  ministers  and  probation- 
ers,— restoring  them  to  the  spiritual  office  and  status  of 
which  the  church  courts  had  deprived  them. 

5.  That  the  said  civil  courts  have  power  to  determine 
on  the  right  to  sit  as  members  of  the  supreme  and  other 
judicatories  of  the  church  by  law  established,  and  to  issue 
interdicts  against  sitting  and  voting  therein,  irrespective  of 
the  judgment  and  determination  of  the  said  judicatories. 

6.  That  the  said  civil  courts  have  power  to  supersede 
the  majority  of  a  church  court  of  the  establishment,  iti 
regard  to  the  exercise  of  its  spiritual  functions  as  a  church 


84  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

court,  and  to  authorize  the  minority  to  exercise  the  said 
functions,  in  opposition  to  the  court  itself  and  to  the  supe- 
rior judicatories  of  the  establishment. 

7.  That  the  said  civil  courts  have  power  to  stay  pro- 
cesses of  discipline  pending  before  courts  of  the  church  by 
law  established,  and  to  interdict  such  courts  from  proceed- 
ing therein. 

8.  That  no  pastor  of  a  congregation  can  be  admitted 
into  the  church  courts  of  the  establishment  and  allowed  to 
rule,  as  well  as  to  teach,  agreeably  to  the  institution  of  the 
office  by  the  Head  of  the  church,  nor  to  sit  in  any  of  the 
judicatories  of  the  church,  inferior  or  supreme,  and  that 
no  additional  provision  can  be  made  for  the  exercise  of 
spiritual  discipline  among  members  of  the  church,  though 
not  affecting  any  patrimonial  interests,  and  no  alteration 
introduced  in  the  state  of  pastoral  superintendence  and 
spiritual  discipline  in  any  parish  without  the  coercion  of  a 
civil  court. 

All  which  jurisdiction  and  power  on  the  part  of  the  said 
civil  courts  severally  above  specified,  whatever  proceedings 
may  have  given  occasion  to  its  exercise,  is,  in  our  opinion, 
in  itself  inconsistent  with  Christian  liberty, — with  the  au- 
thority which  the  Head  of  the  church  hath  conferred  on 
the  church  alone. 

5.  The  free  exercise  of  the  elective  franchise  is  one  of 
the  most  effectual  means  of  guarding  against  the  introduc- 
tion of  unworthy  men  into  the  ministry. 

The  common  people  best  know  the  private  character  of 
the  minister.  They  have  a  deep  interest  in  it.  They  seek 
the  spiritual  welfare  of  themselves  and  their  children,  in 
the  selection  of  their  pastor.  These  are  precisely  the  con- 
siderations assigned  for  continuing  to  the  people  the  right 
of  election  in  the  ancient  church,  after  the  rise  of  Episco- 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  85 

pacy.92  On  the  contrary,  he  who  has  a  living-  at  his 
disposal,  is  often  ignorant  of  the  true  character  of  him  who 
seeks  a  preferment.  A  thousand  sinister  motives  may  bias 
his  judgment.  He  may  be  the  most  unsuitable  man  pos- 
sible for  such  a  trust.^^  In  a  word,  who  does  not  know  that 
the  curse  of  a  graceless  ministry  has  ever  rested  upon  the 
church,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  wherever  they  have  not 
enjoyed  the  right  of  electing  their  own  pastors  ?  The  rich 
and  quiet  livings  of  an  establishment,  especially  if  coupled 
with  the  authority,  the  distinction  and  emoluments  of  the 
Episcopal  office,  will  ever  be  an  object  of  ambition  to  world- 
ly men.  "  Make  me  a  bishop,"  said  an  ancient  idolater, 
"make  me  a  bishop,  and  I  will  surely  be  a  Christian." 

6.  The  free  enjoyment  of  the  elective  franchise  is  one  of 
the  best  means  of  guarding  the  church  against  the  inroads 
of  error. 

The  Puseyism  of  the  day  is  a  delusion  of  the  priesthood. 
The  writer  has  often  been  assured  in  England  that  few, 
comparatively,  of  the  common  people  are  led.  away  by  it. 
And  in  this  country  we  have  lately  seen  the  laity  nobly 
struggling  against  diocesan  despotism,  to  resist  it.  So  it 
has  ever  been;   the  delusions  and  heresies  that  have  over- 

92  It  was,  according  to  Cyprian,  a  divine  tradition  and  apostolical  cus- 
tom, observed  by  the  African  church,  and  throughout  almost  all  the 
provinces,  that  the  election  is  to  be  performed  in  the  presence  of  the 
people  of  the  place,  who  fully  know  every  man's  life,  and,  in  their  very 
intimate  acquaintance,  have  carefully  observed  his  habitual  conversation, 
Episcopus  deligatur,  plebe  prsesente,  quae  singulorum  vitam  plenissime 
novit,  et  uniuscujusque  actum  de  ejus  conversatione  perspexerit — Coram 
omni  synagoga  jubet  Deus  constitui  sacerdotem,  id  est,  instruit  atque 
ostendit  ordinationes  sacerdotales  nonnisi,sub  populi  assistentis  conscien- 
tia  fieri  opportere  ut,  plebe  praesente,  vel  detegantur  malorum  crimina,  vel 
bonorum  merita  praedicentiir, — Quod  utique  idcireo  tam  diligenter  et 
caute,  convocata  plebe,  tota  gerebatur,  ne  quis  ad  altaris  ministerium,  vel 
ad  sacerdotalem  locum  indignus  ohreperet— Cyprian,  Ep.  G8. 

93  Tracts  for  the  Times,  No.  59,  p.  413. 

8 


86  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

run  the  church,  have  originated  with  the  clergy .9^  But 
in  a  ministry  having  no  dependence  upon  a  people,  will  be 
found,  if  any  where,  irreligious,  speculative,  dangerous 
men,  who,  caring  little  for  their  flocks,  will  substitute  their 
own  delusions,95  for  the  simple  truths  which  an  intelligent 
and  virtuous  people  delight  to  hear,  and  which  a  godly 
ministry,  such  as  they  would  choose,  would  desire  to 
preach.  Leave  the  choice  of  the  ministry,  then,  in  the 
hands  of  the  people.  They  will  most  carefully  seek  for 
one  who  is  sound  in  the  faith,  and  honest  in  the  sacred 
cause  ;  they  will  soonest  reject  one  who  may  seek  to  prevent 
the  truth  of  God.  In  the  laity  alone  is  there  safety,  who 
will  see  that  the  church  is  furnished  with  a  ministry  who 
shall  be  the  best  defenders  of  the  faith,  by  the  authority  of 
their  learning  and  the  piety  of  their  lives. 

7.  The  right  of  suffrage  promotes  a  mutual  endearment 
between  pastor  and  people ;  and  the  spiritual  edification  of 
the  church.  They  receive  instruction,  with  affectionate 
interest  and  confidence,  from  the  lips  of  the  preacher  whom 

94  ii  If  you  were  to  take  the  ^reat  mass  of  the  people  of  England,  you 
would  find  a  burst  of  righteous  indignation  against  them  (the  Tractarians). 
They  would  say,  If  we  are  to  have  popery,  let  us  have  honest  old  popery, 
at  once.  If  you  are  right,  you  do  not  go  far  enough ;  and  if  you  are  wrong, 
you  go  too  far  " — Rev.  Mr.  Sewell,  cited  in  Letters  to  the  Laity. 

95  a  When  the  prerogative  and  pre-eminence  of  any  single  person  in  the 
church  began  to  be  in  esteem,  not  a  few  who  failed  in  their  attempts  of 
attaining  it,  to  revenge  themselves  on  the  church,  made  it  their  business 
to  invent  and  propagate  pernicious  heresies.  So  did  Thebulis,  at  Jerusa- 
lem, Euseb,,  lib.  4,  cap.  22,  and  Valentinus,  Tertul.  ad.  Valentin.,  cap.  4, 
and  Marcion,  at  Rome,  Epiphan.  Haeres,42.  Montanus  fell  into  his  dotage 
on  the  same  account ;  so  did  Wovitianus,  at  Rome,  Euseb.,  lib.  7,  cap.  43, 
and  Arius,  at  Alexandria.  Hence  is  that  censure  of  them  by  Lactantius, 
lib.  4,  cap.  30,  '  li  quorum  fides  fuit  lubrica,  cum  Deum  nosse  se  et  colere 
simularent,  augendis  opibus  et  honori  studentes,  affectabant  maximum 
sacerdotium,et  a  potioribus  victi,  secedere  cum  suffragatoribus  maluerunt, 
quam  eos  ferre  prajpositos  quibus  concupierant  ipsi  ante  proeponi."— Owen, 
Works,  Vol.  XX,  p.  169. 


ELECTIONS  BY  THE  CHURCH.  87 

they  have  appointed  over  themselves,  the  man  of  their 
choice;  while  he,  in  turn,  speaks  to  them  in  the  fulness 
and  confidence  of  reciprocal  love.  The  ministry  of  a 
priesthood,  on  the  other  hand,  which  is  imposed  upon  a 
people,  is  a  hireling  service,  in  which  neither  speaker  nor 
hearer  can  have  equal  interest. 

Finally.     It  produces  the  most  efficient  ministry. 

This  is  a  general  conclusion,  drawn  from  the  foregoing 
considerations,  and  a  position  established  by  the  whole 
history  of  the  church.  It  contradicts  all  history,  and  all 
the  principles  of  human  conduct,  to  suppose,  that  an  inde- 
pendent establishment,  in  which  the  priesthood  are  settled 
down  at  ease  in  their  livings,  can  have  the  efficacy  and 
moral  power  of  a  clergy,  the  tenure  of  whose  office  depends 
upon  their  activity  and  usefulness. 


CHAPTER  V. 

DISCIPLINE  BY  THE  CHURCHES. 

The  discipline  of  the  apostolical  churches  was  admin- 
istered by  the  body  of  believers  collectively ;  and  continued 
to  be  so  directed  until  the  third  or  fourth  century.  About 
this  period  of  time,  the  simple  and  efficient  discipline  of 
the  primitive  church  was  exchanged  for  a  complicated  and 
oppressive  system  of  penance  administered  by  the  clergy. 
But  the  church  itself  possesses  the  only  legitimate  authority 
for  the  administration  of  their  discipline.  They  are  a  vol- 
untary association.  They  have  the  right  to  enact  their 
own  laws,  and  prescribe  such  conditions  of  membership 
with  themselves  as  they  may  judge  expedient,  agreeably 
to  the  word  of  God.  The  right  to  administer  ecclesiastical 
discipline  was  guaranteed  to  the  churches  from  their  first 
organization  under  the  apostles ;  but  was  finally  lost  by  the 
usurpation  of  the  priesthood  under  the  Episcopal  hierarchy. 

I.  The  right  to  administer  ecclesiastical  discipline  was 
originally  vested  in  the  church  itself. 

The  argument  in  support  of  this  proposition  is  derived : 

1.  From  the  Scriptures. 

2.  From  the  early  Fathers. 

8.  From  the  authority  of  ecclesiastical  writers. 
4.  From   the    fact,  that   the    entire  government  of  the 
church  was  vested  in  that  body  itself. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  0\f 

1.  The  argument  from  Scripture. 

Our  Lord  himself  is  generally  supposed  to  teach,  in  Matt. 
18  :  15 — 18,  that  the  public  discipline  of  offenders  should 
be  administered  by  authority  of  the  church. 

These  instructions  are  understood  to  have  been  given 
prospectively,  and  to  contain  the  rules  by  which  the  disci- 
pline of  the  Christian  church  should  be  administered. 
But  whether  given  prospectively  with  reference  to  the 
Christian  church  which  .  was  about  to  be  established,  or 
designed  to  exhibit  the  proper  mode  of  procedure  in  the 
discipline  of  the  Jewish  synagogue,  they  doubtless  develop 
the  principle  on  which  ecclesiastical  censure  should  be 
conducted  under  the  Christian  dispensation.  Lightfoot 
and  Vilringa  have  clearly  shown  that  the  directions  of  our 
Lord,  in  this  instance,  accord  with  the  established  usage  of 
the  synagogue,  which,  as  we  have  already  seen,  was  the 
pattern  of  the  primitive  church,  both  in  its  government  and 
forms  of  worship.  Vitringa  has  shown,  at  length,  that  this 
sentence  was  to  be  pronounced  by  a  popular  vote  in  public 
assembly,  and  that  the  same  course  of  procedure  was  to 
be  the  rule  of  the  Christian  church.  The  church  there- 
fore, collectively,  like  the  synagogue,^  is  the  ecclesiastical 
court  of  impeachment  for  the  trial  of  offences.  If  private 
remonstrance  proves  ineffectual,  the  case  is  to  be  brought 
before  the  church  in  public  assembl}?-  convened;  to  be 
adjudged  by  a  public  vote  of  that  body,  after  the  manner 
of  the  Jewish  synagogue. 

This  rule  of  discipline  was  also  established  in  the 
Christian  church  by  apostolical  authority. 

We  have  on  record  one  instance  of  a  trial  before  the 
church  which  was  instituted  by  the  command  of  the  apos- 
tle Paul,  and  conducted  throughout  agreeably  to  his  instruc- 
tions.    A  Christian  convert  in  Corinth,  and  a  member  of 

1  Vitringa,  De  Synagoga  Vet.,  Lib.  3,  p.  1,  c.  9.  Augusti's  Denkwtlrdig- 
keiten,  Vol.  IX,  p.  43,  seq.     PfafF,  De  Originibus  Juris  Eccles.,  p.  99. 

.8* 


90  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  church  which  had  recently  been  established  in  that  city, 
had  maintained  an  incestuous  connexion  with  his  father's 
wife.  This  shocking  sin,  unexampled  even  among  the 
Gentiles,  the  apostle  rebukes  with  righteous  abhorrence. 
The  transgressor  ought  to  be  put  away  from  among  them ; 
and,  uniting  with  them  as  if  present  in  their  assembly  con- 
vened for  the  purpose,  he  resolves  to  deliver  him  unto 
Satan,  in  the  name,  and  with  the  power  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  i.  e.,  by  the  help  and  with  the  authority  of  the 
Lord,  1  Cor.  5:  8  —  5. 

Upon  this  passage  we  remark  :  — 

L  The  decision  was  not  an  official  act  of  the  apostle, 
a  sentence  pronounced  by  his  authority  alone.  It  was  the 
act  of  the  church.  Absent  in  body,  but  present  in  spirit 
with  them  when  assembled  together,  the  apostle  pronounces 
his  decision  as  if  acting  and  co-operating  with  them.  By  this 
parenthetic  sentence,  "  When  ye  are  gathered  together  and 
my  spirit,"  he  indicates  the  intervention  and  co-operation  of 
the  church  in  the  sentence  pronounced  upon  the  trans- 
gressor. "  The  apostle,"  says  De  Wette,^  "  qualifies  the 
earnestness  with  which  he  speaks  in  the  third  verse,  by 
reference,  first,  to  the  authority  of  Christ,  and  secondly,  to 
the  co-operation  of  the  church ;  agreeably  to  the  republican 
spirit  of  ancient  Christianity,  personating  himself  as  present 
in  spirit  in  their  assembly."  Such  also  is  Neander's  in- 
terpretation of  the  passage.  "  When  the  apostle  speaks  of 
an  excommunication  from  the  church,  he  regards  himself 
as  united  in  spirit  with  the  whole  church,  1  Cor.  5 :  4, 
setting  forth  the  rule,  that  their  action  is  requisite  in  all 
such  concerns  of  general  interest. "^  Even  in  this  very 
chapter,  he  refuses  himself  to  judge  in  such  cases,  sub- 
mitting them  to  the  church  themselves.  "  What  have  I  to 
do  to  judge  them  that  are  without?  "  i.  e.,  men  of  the  world, 

2  Comment,  ad  locum. 

3  Allgem.  Gesch.,  1,  p.  292.    Comp.  p.  350.   Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  pp.  319, 320. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  91- 

"  Do  not  ye  judge  them  that  are  within?  i.  e.,  members  of 
the  church.  "  But  them  that  are  without  God  judgeth," 
Ttglrei,  or  rather  xoh'^i,  will  judge,  which  is  the  approved 
reading.  "  Therefore  put  awaij  from  among  yourselves 
that  loicked  person,^''  vs.  12,  13. 

The  severe  censure  with  which  the  apostle  reflects  upon 
the  Corinthians  for  tolerating  the  offender  so  long,  shows 
that  the  responsibility  rested  with  them.  They  should 
have  put  away  this  offence  from  among  them.^  But  if  it 
was  wholly  the  act  of  the  apostle,  why  censure  them  for 
neglecting  to  do  what  they  had  no  right  or  authority  to  do  ? 
Are  the  members  of  the  Episcopal  church  to  be  blamed 
for  the  total  neglect  of  discipline  in  their  communion,  while 
the  clergy  have  the  sole  power  of  administering  discipline? 
Neither  could  the  Corinthians  deserve  censure,  except  they 
had  authority  to  exercise  the  discipline  which  they  neglected. 
Both  here,  and  in  2  Cor.  2:  3 — 11,  the  apostle  refers  dis- 
tinctly to  their  neglect  in  this  matter. 

Again,  in  2  Cor.  2  :  6,  he  speaks  of  the  excommunica- 
tion as  the  act  of  the  church.  The  punishment  was  in- 
flicted, t57t6  twr  ijleiovow,  "  of  many,"  i.  e.,  by  the  many,  the 
majority.  Bilroth  paraphrases  this  in  connection  with  the 
preceding  verse,  as  follows  :  —  "  Whether  he,  or  the  offen- 
der, have  caused  grief  to  me,  comes  not  into  consideration. 
It  is  not  that  /must  suffer  for  him,  but  you;  at  least,  a  part 
of  you;  for  I  will  not  be  unjust,  and  charge  you  all  with 
having  been  indifferent  concerning  his  transgressions. 
Paul  proceeds  still  further,  v.  6 ;  he  calls  those  who  had 
reprehended  the  transgressor  the  majority,  who  had  con- 
demned his  vice  and  been  grieved  by  it." 

Once  more,  the  apostle  does  not  himself  restore  the 
transgressor,  now  penitent  for  his  sin ;  hut  exhorts  the  Co- 
rinthians  to  do  it.     But  if  the  church  have  themselves  the 

4  Mosheim,  Institutiones  Majores,  P.  II,  c.  3,  6  14. 


92  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

authority  to  receive  him  again  to  their  communion,  had 
they  not  also  this  right  of  censure  ?  "  The  punishment 
which  they  had  extended  over  him,  by  excluding  him  from 
their  communion,  is  declared  to  be  sufficient,  since  he  had 
reformed  himself,  (on  Ixuv6p^  see  Winer,  p.  297.)  The 
apostle  himself,  therefore,  proposes,  v.  7,  that  they  should 
again  treat  him  in  a  friendly  manner,  and  comfort  him,  in 
order  that  he  might  not  be  worn  away  by  over-much  grief,"  ^ 
In  V.  10,  again,  he  signifies  his  readiness  to  assent  to  their 
decisions ;  whom  they  forgive,  he  forgives  also ;  and  that, 
because  they  had  forgiven  him. 

2.  This  sentence  was  an  actual  excommunication;  not 
a  judicial  visitation  analogous  to  that  upon  Simon  Magus, 
Acts  13  :  11.  By  this  sentence  he  was  removed  from  the 
church  of  Christ,  and  reduced  to  his  former  condition  as  a 
heathen  man.  This,  according  to  the  most  approved  com- 
mentators, is  the  full  meaning  of  the  phrase,  nagadidovpcei 
TO)  J^aravu.  The  World,  in  the  angelology  of  the  Jews,  and 
agreeably  to  the  Scriptures,  comprises  two  great  divisions  ; 
the  kingdom  of  Christ,  and  the  kingdom  of  Satan.  By 
this  sentence  of  excommunication,  the  incestuous  person 
is  transferred  from  the  visible  kingdom  of  our  Lord,  to 
the  dominion  of  Satan,  and  in  this  sense  delivered  unto 
him.- 

3.  The  ultimate  object  of  this  discipli7ie  was  the  reforma- 
tion of  the  offender;  the  destruction  of  the  flesh,  that  the 
spirit  may  be  saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus.  It  was 
not  a  penance,  an  arbitrary,  prelatical  infliction  of  pains  and 
penalties,  but  a  disciplinary  process  for  the  spiritual  good  of 
the  individual. 

4.  It  is  questionable,  perhaps,  whether  the  sentence  was 
accompanied  with  the  judicial  infliction  of  any  disease 
whatever.     Many  of  the   most  respectable  commentators 

5  Bilroth,  Comment,  ad  locum. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  93 

understand,  by  the  delivering  "  to  Satan,  for  the  destruction 
of  the  Jlesh,''  the  visitation  of  some  wasting  malady.  The 
phraseology  doubtless  admits  of  such  a  construction,  and 
the  language  of  the  apostle  on  other  occasions  seems  to 
favor  it.  Com.  1  Cor.  11:  30.  1  Tim.  1:  20.  But  the 
consequences  of  this  excommunication  were  of  themselves 
sufficient,  it  may  be,  to  justify  this  strong  expression,  the 
destruction  of  the  flesh.  To  the  Jews,  under  the  old  dis- 
pensation, and  to  primitive  Christians  under  the  new,  it 
was  no  light  matter.  It  was  a  withering  curse.  It  was  a 
civil  death  ;  a  total  exclusion  from  kindred,  from  society, 
from  all  the  charities  of  life,  which  Christians  were  wont 
to  reciprocate  even  with  the  heathen.^  This  construction, 
again,  is  given  to  the  passage  by  commentators  of  high 
authority. 

But  is  any  hodily  dAsease  intended  ?  Flesh,  orcio^,  often 
denotes  the  carnal  propensities,  the  sinful  appetites  and 
passions.  Gal.  5:  17,  19.  6:8.  Eph.  2:  3.  Col.  2:  11. 
The  subjugation,  the  putting  away  of  these,  is  distinctly 
implied  in  the  ultimate  design  of  this  discipline, — the  sal- 
vation of  the  spirit, — and  is  not  this  all  that  is  intended  in 
the  oledgov  ttj^  aaqycog^  the  destruction  of  the  flesh?  How- 
ever that  may  be,  it  is  not  essential  to  our  present  purpose. 
Whatever  may  have  been,  to  the  guilty  person,  the  conse- 
quences of  the  sentence  of  excommunication,  it  proceeded 
from  the  church  at  the  instigation  of  the  apostle. 

An  excommunication  somewhat  similar  is  described 
briefly  in  1  Cor.  16  :  22, — "  If  any  man  love  not  the  Lord 

6  Josephus  relates,  that  those  who  were  excommunicated  from  the 
Essenes  often  died  after  a  miserable  manner,  and  therefore  were,  from 
motives  of  compassion,  received  again  when  at  the  point  of  death.  In 
this  instance,  their  oath  obliged  them  to  refuse  such  food  as  he  might 
find  5  but  was  not  the  case  equally  as  bad,  when  all  were  bound,  not  only  to 
refuse  him  subsistence,  but  all  expressions  of  kindness  and  charity  ? 
Comp.  Jahn's  Archaology,  §  528.  Home's  Introduction,  B.  II,  c.  3,  §  4. 
Neander's  Allgem.  Gesch.,  I,  373,  2d  edit. 


94  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Jesus  Christ,  let  liim.  be  anathema  maran-atha."  The 
word  anathema  corresponds  to  the  Hebrew  D^n,  which 
denotes  either  any  thing-  given  up  to  God,  or  devoted  to 
destruction.  It  was  a  form  of  excommunication  familiar 
to  the  Jews,  which  was  pronounced  publicly  upon  the 
offender,  and  excluded  him  from  all  communion  whatever 
with  his  countrymen !  '^  Such  was  the  anathema^  a  solemn 
sentence  of  excommunication,  publicly  pronounced  upon 
the  transgressor.  The  phrase,  Maran-atha,  is  the  Syro- 
Chaldaic  nnx  ^}^'^,  The  Lord  cometh,  i.  e.,  to  judgment. 
The  whole,  taken  together,  implies  that  the  transgressor  is 
separated  from  the  communion  of  the  church,  and  aban- 
doned to  the  just  judgment  of  God.  All  that  the  apostle 
seems  to  demand  of  the  Corinthians  respecting  the  offender 
is,  that  they  should  exclude  him  from  their  society,  so  that 
he  might  cease  to  be  a  member  of  the  church,  verses  12,  13. 
He  pronounces  no  further  judgment  upon  him,  but  expressly 
refers  to  the  future  judgment  of  God. 

In  review,  therefore,  of  these  important  passages,  several 
things  are  worthy  of  particular  remark. 

1.  The  sentence  of  exclusion  proceeded  not  from  the 
pastor  of  the  church,  but /row  the  church  collectively. 

2.  The  excommunication  is  styled  a  punishment,  eTtirifila. 
But  the  apostle  distinguishes  it  both  from  the  civil  penalties 
which  attended  the  bans  of  excommunication  among  the 
Jews,  and  from  the  judicial  sentence  of  God,  regarding  the 
whole  transaction  as  an  ecclesiastical  act,  intended  to  express 
a  just  abhorrence  of  the  crime,  a  merited  censure  of  it. 

3.  The  reason  assigned  for  the  restoration  of  the  offender 
was  repentance, — Ivnri, — sorrow  for  his  sin,  to  which  the 
apostle  probably  refers  in  a  subsequent  passage,  7 :  10, 
when  he  says,  "  Godly  sorrow  worketh  repentance  to  sal- 
vation not  to  be  repented  of." 

7  Jahn's  Archaology;  §  258.  Du  Pin,  De  Antiqua  Disciplina,  Diss.  3,  c.  2, 

p.  272. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  95 

4.  He  was  restored  to  the  communion  and  fellowship  of 
the  church,  as  he  had  been  excluded,  bij  the  jnilUc  consent^ 
the  vote  of  that  body.  In  accordance  with  these  views, 
the  apostle  exhorts  the  Corinthians  to  separate  from  them 
any  other  immoral  person,  whether  he  be  a  fornicator,  or 
covetous,  or  an  idolater,  or  a  railer,  or  a  drunkard,  or  an 
extortioner.  1  Cor.  5:  11.  And  the  Galatians  he  exhorts 
to  restore,  in  the  spirit  of  meekness,  one  who  may  have 
been  overtaken  in  fault.  Now  this  right  of  judging  and 
acting,  both  in  the  expulsion  of  the  immoral  and  the  resto- 
ration of  the  penitent,  vests  the  power  of  ecclesiastical  cen- 
sure in  them.^     Comp.  2  Thess.  3:  14,  and  Rom.  16:  17. 

It  was,  therefore,  the  privilege  of  the  apostolic  church  to 
administer  its  own  discipline  by  a  free  and  public  decision 
in  their  own  body,  a  right  which  accords  with  every  just 
principle  of  religious  liberty,  while  it  clearly  illustrates 
the  popular  character  of  the  primitive  constitution  of  the 
church.  For,  as  in  their  elections,  so  in  their  discipline, 
the  apostolical  churches  were  doubtless  in  harmony  one 
with  another,  and  may  justly  be  presumed  to  have  observed 
the  same  rules  of  fellowship.  Based  on  the  same  princi- 
ples, and  governed  by  similar  laws,  one  example  may 
suffice  to  illustrate  the  policy  of  all.^ 

2.  Argument  from  the  early  fathers. 

Few  passages,  comparatively,  occur  in  their  writings 
relating  immediately  to  the  point  under  consideration. 
But  enough  can  be  derived  from  them  to  show  that  the 
church  continued,  for  two  or  three  centuries,  to  regulate- 
her  own  discipline  by  the  will  of  the  majority,  expressed 
either  by  a  popular  vote,  or  by  a  representative  delegation 
chosen  by  them. 

8  Rights  of  the  Church,  by  Tindal,  p.  39. 

9  On  this  whole  subject,  comp.Mtringa,  De  Synagoga,  Lib.  3,  p.  l,c.  10.. 
Pertsch,  Kirch.  Hist.,  I,  4to,  p.  469,  seq.  Recht.  Eccles.  Kirchenbanns,. 
Vorrede,  Ausgab,  1738, 4.  C.  M.  Pfaff,  De  Originibus  Juris  Eccl.,  pp.10- 13. 
Neander's  Allgem.  Gesch.,  p.  3.49,  seq^.,  71,  98,  «fec. 


96  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Clemens  Romanus,  the  only  apostolical  father  belonging 
strictly  to  the  first  century,  and  contemporary  with  several 
of  the  apostles,  throughout  his  epistle  treats  the  church  of 
Corinth  as  the  only  court  of  censure.  He  addresses  his 
epistle,  A.  D.  68  pr  98,  not  to  the  bishop,  but  to  the  entire 
body  of  believers.  This  circumstance  is  worthy  of  particu- 
lar notice,  inasmuch  as  the  epistle  is  written  relative  to  a 
case  of  discipline,  and  not  to  enforce  the  practical  duties  of 
religion.  The  church  at  Corinth  was  recognized  as  having 
authority  in  the  case  under  consideration.  The  epistle  of 
Polycarp,  also,  treating  on  the  same  general  subject,  is 
addressed  to  the  church  at  Philippi,  recognizing  in  the 
same  manner  the  right  of  the  church  to  take  cognizance  of 
offences. 

Clement,  in  his  epistle,  reflects  severely  upon  the  Corin- 
thians for  their  treatment  of  their  religious  teachers,  some 
of  whom  they  had  rejected  from  the  ministry.  To  do  this 
without  good  reason,  he  assures  them  "  would  be  no  small 
sin"  in  them,io  and  earnestly  exhorts  them  to  exercise  a 
charitable,  orderly,  and  submissive  spirit.  But  he  ofTers 
no  hint,  ^  42 — 53,  that  they  had  exceeded  the  limits  of 
their  legitimate  authority,  even  in  deposing  some  from  the 
ministry ;  on  the  contrary,  he  recognizes  the  right  of  the 
church  to  regulate,  at  their  discretion,  their  own  discipline, 
and  the  duty  of  others  to  acquiesce  in  it.  "  Who  among 
you  is  generous?  who  is  compassionate  ?  who  has  any 
charity  ?  Let  him  say  whether  this  sedition,  this  conten- 
tion, and  these  schisms  be  on  my  account.  I  am  ready  to 
depart, — to  go  whithersoever  you  please,  and  to  do  whatso' 
ever  ye  shall  command  me,  only  let  the  flock  of  Christ  be 
in  peace  with  the  ministers  that  are  set  over  them."ii 

The  above  passage  is  twice  quoted  by  Chancellor  King, 
of  the  Episcopal  church,  in  proof  that  the  laity  were  mem- 
bers of  the  ecclesiastical  court  for  the  trial  of  offences,  "and 

10  Chauncey's  Episcopacy,  pp.  11,  78.  n  Ep.  ad  Cor.  c.  44. 


DISCirLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  97 

judges  therein."!-  And  Riddle,  of  the  same  communion, 
concurs  with  him  in  opinion.  *'  Clement,"  says  this  au- 
thor, "recommends  those  on  whose  account  the  dissensions 
had  arisen,  to  retire  and  to  submit  to  the  will  of  the.  majori- 
ty/'13  These  censures  to  which  Clement  urges  them  to 
submit,  he  characterizes  as  "?Ae  commands  of  the  multitude^ 
lb.  7TQO(JTuaao[ieva  tlitio  jov  nlifiovg." 

The  epistle  of  Polycarp  to  the  Philippians,  written,  ac- 
cording to  bishop  Wake,  A.  ,D.  116  or  117,  affords  us, 
indirectly,  a  similar  example  of  the  deportment  of  the 
church  towards  a  fallen  brother.  This  venerable  father 
was  greatly  afflicted  at  the  defection  of  Valens,  a  pres- 
byter of  that  church,  who  had  fallen  into  some  scandalous 
offence.  But  he  entreats  the  charitable  consideration  of 
the  church  towards  the  offender,  urging  them  to  exercise 
moderation  towards  him ;  and  on  similar  occasions  to  seek 
to  reclaim  the  erring,  and  to  call  them  back,  in  the 
spirit  of  kindness  and  Christian  charity.!"*  The  address 
and  exhortation,  throughout,  proceed  on  the  supposition, 
that  the  duty  of  mutual  watchfulness  belongs  to  the  breth- 
ren of  the  church  collectively.  It  is  not,  however,  a,  clear 
case  of  church  discipline,  though  this  may  be  implied.. 

Next  in  succession  is  Tertullian.  He  has  given,  in  his 
Apology  for  the  Christians,  an  account  of  the  constitution  of 
their  society  oi:  church,  together  with  the  nature  and  cir- 
cumstances of  its  religious  worship  and  discipline.  The 
passage  in  question  is,  in  several  respects,  one  of  the  most 
important  extant,  in  the  writings  of  the  early  fathers.  Let 
us,  however,  confine  our  attention  at  present  to  that  part  of 
it  which  relates  to  their  mode  of  administering  ecclesiastical 

12  Primitive  Church,  B.  I,  c.  11,  §  6,  7,  §  2. 

13  Christ.  Antiq.,  p.  9.  Ei  8k  £us  ai6t.aig  xal  ^eotg  val  o/^(7//«Ta 
i'AXMoib^  arrff/n,  ob  lav  §ovh]ude,  y.al  noiw  t«  ngoaiaaaofzsra 
inb  Tou  Txlrfiovc. — Ep,  ad  Cor.,  c.  54.  ' 

14  Comp.  Ep.,  c.  11. 

9 


98  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

censure.  This  Apology  was  written,  probably,  about  A.  D. 
198  or  199,  or,  at  the  latest,  in  205.  "  We,  Christians,"  says 
Tertullian,  "are  one  body  by  our  agreement  in  religion,  and 
our  unity  of  discipline,  and  bonds  of  hope,  speifoedere,  being 
animated  with  one  and  the  same  hope."  He  then  proceeds 
to  describe  their  public  worship  as  consisting  in  prayer  and 
the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  and  then  adds,  "  Surely  from 
the  sacred  oracles  we  strengthen  our  faith,  we  encourage 
our  hope,  we  establish  our  trust  [in  God],  and,  by  the 
divine  precepts,  press  the  duties  of  religion.  Here,  also, 
we  exhort  and  reprove,  and  pass  the  divine  censure, — [the 
sentence  of  excommunication].  For,  the  judgment  is  given 
with  great  solemnity,  and  as  in  the  presence  of  God.  And 
it  is  regarded  as  the  most  impressive  emblem  of  the  final 
judgment,  when  one  has  so  sinned  as  to  be  banished  from 
the  prayers,  the  assemblies,  and  the  holy  communion  of 
the  church."  15 

We  are  a  society,  corpus  sumus ;  we  are  an  associated 
body,  in  which  seems,  of  necessity,  to  be  implied  the  idea 
of  a  voluntary,  deliberative  and  popular  assembly ; — and 
the  tenor  of  the  entire  passage,  viewed  in  its  connection, 
forcibly  impresses  us  with  the  conviction,  that  the  "  divine 
censure  "  was  inflicted  by  the  united  decision  of  that  body. 
Certain  approved  elders,  probati  quique  seniores,  presided  ; 
but  nothing  is  said  to  indicate  even  that  they  pronounced 
the  sentence,  as  the  officers  of  the  church.  How  extra- 
ordinary the  omission,  then,  if  these  elders  had  already, 
within  the  space  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  years,  usurped 

^5  Corpus  sumus  de  conscientia  religionis  et  disciplinae  unitate  et  spei 

foedere. Certe   fidem,  Sanctis  vocibus  pascimus,  spem  erigimus, 

fiduciam  figimus,  disciplinam  praeceptorum  nihilominus  inculcationibus, 
densamus ;  ibidem  etiam  exhortationes,  castigationes,  et  cfMsura  divina. 
Nam  et  judicatur  magno  cum  pondere,  ut  apud  certos  de  Dei  conspectuj 
summumque  futuri  judicii  praejudicium  est,  se  quis  ita  deliquerit.ut,  a 
communicatione  orationis  et  conventus  et  omnis  sancti  commercii  rele- 
getur.— 4^0^.  39.    Comp.  $  62,  also  J.  H.  Bohmer,  Diss.  3,  p.  151. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  99 

the  prerogatives,  and  assumed  the  rights,  which,  by  divine 
authority,  was  originally  accorded  to  the  church, — of  regu- 
lating her  own  discipline  by  her  public  deliberative  assem- 
bly? Chancellor  King,i^  and  even  the  "great  Du  Pin,"!"^ 
though  himself  a  Roman  Catholic,  both  cite  the  above 
passage,  as  evidence  that  the  discipline  of  the  church  con- 
tinued to  be  administered,  as  from  the  beginning  it  had  been, 
hy  public  vote  of  the  church;  the  clergy  being  understood  to 
have  had  a  joint  action  and  influence  in  these  deliberations. 

On  another  occasion,  Tertullian  remarks,  that  the  crimes 
of  idolatry  and  of  murder  are  of  such  enormity,  that  the 
charity  of  the  churches  is  not  extended  to  such  as  had  been 
guilty  of  these  offences. ^^ 

We  come  next  to  Cyprian,  who  was  contemporary  with 
Tertullian,  and  died  about  forty  years  later.  In  considering 
the  authority  of  Cyprian,  let  the  reader  also  bear  in  mind 
the  following  remarks  of  Riddle  relative  to  this  celebrated 
father.  "  In  these  waitings  of  Cyprian,  as  well  as  in  all 
his  works,  we  are  especially  delighted  with  the  sincere  and 
primitive  piety  of  the  author;  while  the  chief  subject  of  our 
regret  and  disapprobation  are  his  mistaken  views  concern- 
ing the  constitution  of  the  church,  and,  especially,  his 
assertion  of  undue  power  and  prerogative  on  behalf  of 
Christian  ministers; — of  such  influence  and  authority  as 
the  apostles  never  sanctioned,  and  such  as  no  pastors  who 
have  thoroughly  imbibed  the  apostolic  spirit  would  wish  to 
exercise  or  to  possess."  19  But  notwithstanding  this  "undue 
power  and  prerogative"  which  Cyprian  ascribes  to  Chris- 
tian ministers,  he  uniformly  recognizes,  and  most  fully 
asserts,  the  right  of  the  church  to  direct  the  discipline  of 
its  members.     About  the  year  250,  the  emperor  Decius 

16  Prim.  Christ.,  P.  I,  c.  VII,  §  4. 

17  Du  Pin's  Antiqua  Disciplina,  Diss.  3,  c.  1. 

18  Neque  idololatriae,  neque  sanguini  pax  ab  ecclesiis  redditur. — De 
Pudicit,  c.  12.  19  Clirist.  Antiq..  p.  99. 


100  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

issued  an  edict  commanding-  the  Christians  to  sacrifice  to 
the  gods.  To  escape  the  requisitions  and  penaUies  of  this 
edict,  Cyprian,  then  bishop  of  Carthage,  was  compelled  to 
fly  for  his  life,  and  continued  in  exile  about  sixteen  months. 
But  many  of  his  church,  under  the  relentless  persecution 
that  ensued,  yielded  an  apparent  compliance  to  the  empe- 
ror's impious  command.  Others,  without  compliance,  had 
the  address  to  obtain  a  certain  certificate  from  the  prose- 
cuting officer  which  freed  them  from  further  molestation. 
All  such  persons,  however,  were  denominated  the  lapsed, 
lapsi,  and  were  excommunicated  as  apostates.  The  system 
of  canonical  penance,  as  it  was  called,  at  this  time  was  so 
far  established,  that  this  class  of  offenders  were  required  to 
fulfil  the  forms  of  a  prescribed  and  prolonged  penance 
before  they  could  be  restored  to  the  communion  of  the 
church.  Many  of  the  lapsed,  however,  touched  with  a 
sense  of  their  guilt,  plead  for  an  abatement  of  the  rigor  of 
these  austerities,  and  an  earlier  and  easier  return  to  the 
communion  of  the  church.  To  this  course  a  party  in  the 
church  were,  for  various  reasons,  strongly  inclined;  and 
some  were  actually  restored  in  the  absence  of  the  bishop. 
This  irregularity  was  often  and  severely  censured  by 
Cyprian,  who,  in  his  epistles  and  writings  relative  to  the 
case  of  the  lapsed,  often  recognizes  the  right  of  the  people 
to  be  a  party  in  the  deliberations  and  decisions  held,  and 
to  be  held,  respecting  them.  The  clergy  who  had  favored 
this  abuse,  he  says,  "  shall  give  an  account  of  what  they 
have  done,  to  himself,  to  the  confessors,^*^  and  to  the  ichole 
church:' ^^ 

20  "It  was  the  privilege  of  the  confessors,  that  is,  of  persons  who  had 
suffered  torture,  or  received  sentence  of  death,  to  give  to  any  of  the  lapsed 
a  written  paper,  termed  a  letter  of  peace;  and  the  bearer  was  entitled  to  a 
remission  of  some  part  of  the  ecclesiastical  discipline." — Burton's  History 
of  the  Church,  Chap.  15. 

21  Acturi  et  apud  nos,  et  apud  confessores  ipsos,  et  apud  plebem  univer- 
sam,  causam  suam  cum,  Domino  permittente,  in  sinum  matris  ecclesiae 
recolligi  coeperimus. — Ep.  10.  al.  9. 


DISCirLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  101 

Again  he  says,  in  a  letter  addressed  to  the  church, 
"  When  the  Lord  shall  have  restored  peace  unto  us  all, 
and  we  shall  all  have  returned  to  the  church  again,  we 
shall  then  examine  all  these  things,  you  also  being  present 
and  judging  of  them.''''  In  the  conclusion  of  the  same  epistle 
he  adds,  "  I  desire  then  that  they  would  patiently  hear  our 
counsel  and  wait  for  our  return,  that  then,  when  many  of 
us,  bishops,  shall  have  met  together,  we  may  examine  the 
certificates  and  desires  of  the  blessed  martyrs,  according  to 
the  discipline  of  the  Lord,  in  the  presence  of  the  confessors, 
and  according  to  your  will"-'^ 

Again,  in  his  epistle  to  his  people  at  Carthage,  in  which 
he  bewails  the  schism  of  Felicissimus,  he  assures  them 
that,  on  his  return,  he  with  his  colleagues,  will  dispose  of 
the  case  agreeably  to  the  ivill  of  his  peojjle,  and  the  mutual 
council  of  both  clergy  and  people. ^^  The  two  offending 
subdeacons  and  acolyths,  he  declares,  shall  be  tried,  not 
only  in  the  presence  of  his  colleagues,  but  before  the  whole 
people.-"^  The  above  and  other  similar  passages  are  often 
cited  in  evidence  of  the  agency  which  the  people  still 
continued,  in  the  middle  of  the  third  century,  to  exert  in 
the  administration  of  ecclesiastical  censure. ^^  "Will  one 
presume  to  say,  that  in  refusing  to  decide  upon  any  case, 
or  to  exercise  any  authority,  he  only  condescends  kindly 

22  Cum,  pace  nobis  omnibus  a  Domino  priue  data,  ad  ecclesiam  regredi 
coeperimus,  tunc  examinabuiitur  singula,  praesenftftus  et  judicantibus  vobis. 
— Audiant  quaeso,  patientur  consilium  nostrum,  expectent  regressionem 
nostram;  ut  cum  ad  vos,  per  Dei  misericordiam  venerimus,  convocati 
episcopi  plures  secundum  Domini  disciplinam,  et  confessorum,  praesenti- 
am  et  \  estram  qunque  sententiam  martyrum  litteras  et  desideria  examinare 
possimus.— £|p.  12,  al.  11. 

23  Cum  coUegis  meis,  quibus  praesentibus,  secundum  arbitrium  quoque 
vestrum  et  omnium  nostrum  commune  consilium,  sicut  semel  placuit  ea 
quae  agenda  sunt,  disponere  pariter  et  limare  poterimus Ep.  40. 

24  Non  tantum  cum  collegis  meis,  sed  cum  plebe  ipsa  universa.— £p.34. 
Crimina — publice  a  nobis  et  plebe  cognoscerentur. — Ep.  44. 

25  Comp.  Daille,  Right  Use  of  the  Fathers,  B.  2,  c.  6,  pp.  328—330. 

9* 


102  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

to  regard  the  will  of  the  people,  without  acknowledging 
their  right?  we  ask  in  reply,  Is  this  the  language  and  spirit 
of  prelacy  ?  Could  a  modern  diocesan  so  speak,  and  per- 
form all  his  duties  with  such  scrupulous  regard  to  the  will 
of  his  people  in  every  thing,  without  exciting  in  their 
minds  the  idea  of  that  religious  liberty,  which,  from  the 
beginning,  the  church  was  accustomed  to  enjoy,  and  which 
they  were  so  much  encouraged  to  exercise  ?  Under  such 
instructions,  they  must  have  been  but  poor  proficients  in 
the  doctrine  of  passive  obedience. 

Enough  has  been  said  to  illustrate,  at  least,  the  usage  of 
the  church  at  Carthage.  Between  this  church  and  that 
at  Rome,  under  Cornelius,  there  was,  at  this  time,  the 
greatest  harmony  of  sentiment  in  relation  to  the  discipline 
of  the  church.  And,  from  the  correspondence  between  the 
churches,  which  is  recorded  in  the  works  of  Cyprian,  there 
is  conclusive  evidence  that  the  polity  of  that  church  was 
the  same  as  that  of  Carthage.  This  is  so  clearly  asserted 
by  Du  Pin,  that  I  shall  dismiss  this  point  by  citing  his 
authority.  After  making  the  extract  from  Tertullian,  which 
has  been  given  above,  and  others  from  Cyprian,  similar  to 
those  which  have  already  been  cited,  he  adds,  "  From 
whence  it  is  plain,  that  both  in  Rome  and  at  Carthage,  no 
one  could  be  expelled  from  the  church,  or  restored  again, 
except  with  the  consent  of  the  people."  This,  according  to 
the  same  author,  was  in  conformity  with  apostolical  prece- 
dent in  the  case  of  the  incestuous  person  at  Corinth.^e 

Origen,  again,  of  Caesarea  in  Palestine,  speaks  of  the 
conviction  of  an  offender  before  the  whole  church,  enl  ndarig 
trig  ixxh^aiag.  as  the  customary  mode  of  trial. 2'''    "With  that 

26  De  Antiqua  Disciplina,  Diss.  3,  pp.  248,  249. 

^"^  Ugog  8s  to  doy.ovv  axhjQov  ngbg  lovg  rd  ilanova  rifjagrr]- 
xdrug,  elnot  jig  uv  otv  uvx  flfcrTt  dig  k^r^g  firj  dcyovaarru^  to 
tqIjov  uy.ovaai  wj  Slo.  xovio  [^n]y.iii  tivai  itg  idiyov  xul  Tf  Aw/'?yi/, 
•Tj  firiKSTt  deridrivui  lov  ItiI  naar^g  x^g  hxxXijoiug. — Comment.in 
JMa«.;  Tom.  13,  p.  612.    Com.  p.  613. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  103 

of  Origen  we  may  join  the  authority  of  Chrysostom  at 
Constantinople.  In  commenting  upon  1  Cor.  5 :  3 — 5,  he 
represents  the  complaint  of  the  apostle  to  be  that  the 
Corinthians  had  not  put  away  that  wicked  person  from 
among  them;  "  showing  that  this  ought  to  be  done  without 
their  teacher,"  -^  and  that  the  apostle  associates  them  with 
him,  "  that  his  own  authority  might  not  seem  to  be  too 
great"  in  the  transaction.  Theodoret  also  expresses  much 
the  same  sentiments  upon  the  passage  under  consideration-^^ 

These  authorities  are  derived  both  from  the  Eastern  and 
the  Western  church.  As  ancient  expositions  of  the  apostoli- 
cal rule,  and  as  examples  of  the  usage  of  the  churches  in 
the  ages  immediately  succeeding  that  of  the  apostles,  they 
indicate  that  throughout  this  period  ecclesiastical  discipline 
was  administered  in  accordance  with  the  will  of  the  people, 
and  by  their  decision.  The  bishops  and  clergy,  instead  of 
holding  in  their  own  grasp  the  keys  of  the  kingdom  of 
heaven,  co-operated  with  the  church  in  their  deliberations ; 
and  acted  as  the  official  organ  of  the  assembly  in  executing 
its  decisions.  Neither  were  the  bans  of  the  church  wielded 
in  terror,  as  often  they  have  been  since,  by  an  arbitrary 
priesthood,  to  accomplish  their  own  sinister  ends. 

The  penitent  was  restored,  also,  in  the  spirit  of  kindness 
and  Christian  forgiveness,  by  the  joint  consent  of  the  same 
body  which  had  originally  excluded  him  from  their  com- 
munion. 

This  point  deserves  distinct  consideration,  as  another 
indication  of  the  religious  liberty  enjoyed  by  the  church. 
Paul  submitted  to  the  church  at  Corinth  the  restoration  of 
the  offender  whom  they  had  excluded  from  his  communion. 

^^  dsixvvg  ort  ds  /wo/j  tou  diduaaulov  to  ysveadui,  edet 
Xva  (uri  do^j]  nollii  en  t)  av6ei>j(a. 

Horn.  15,  ad  1  Cor.,  Tom.  10,  p.  12G. 
29  Theodoret,  Comment,  ad  locum,  Opera,  Tom.  3,  p  141.   Comp.  Blon- 
dell,  De  jure  plebis  in  regimine  eeclesiastico,  where  many  other  authorities 
are  given. 


104  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Tertullian  makes  it  the  duty  of  the  penitent  to  cast  himself 
at  the  feet  of  the  clergy,  and  kneeling  at  the  altar  of  God, 
to  seek  the  pardon  and  i7ite7' cessions  of  all  the  brethren?^ 
Cyprian,  in  the  passage  cited  above,  declares,  that  the 
lapsed,  who  had  been  excluded  from  the  church,  must 
make  their  defence  before  all  the  people,  apud  plebem 
universam.  "  It  was  ordained  by  an  African  synod,  in  the 
third  century,  that,  except  in  danger  of  death,  or  of  a  sudden 
persecution,  none  should  be  received  unto  the  peace  of  the 
church,  without  the  knowledge  and  consent  of  the  peophy^^ 
Natalis,  at  Rome,  in  the  first  part  of  the  third  century, 
threw  himself  at  the  feet  of  the  clergy  and  laitij,  and  so 
bewailed  his  faults,  that  the  church  was  moved  with  com- 
passion for  him,  and  with  much  difficulty  he  was  received 
into  their  communion. ^2  The  same  is  related  of  one  of 
the  bishops,  who  was  restored  to  the  church  at  Rome, 
under  Cornelius,  to  lay  communion,  '■'-.through  the  media- 
tion of  all  the  people  then  presenty^"^  Serapion,  at 
Antioch,  again,  was  refused  admission  to  that  church, 
nobody  giving  attention  to  him?^  At  Rome,  then,  in 
Africa,  in  Asia,  and  universally,  the  penitent  was  restored 
to  Christian  communion,  by  the  authority  of  the  church 
from  which  he  had  been  expelled. 

If  it  were  necessary  to  adduce  further  evidence  in  vindi- 
cation of  the  right  of  the  people  to  administer  the  discipline 
of  the  church,  it  might  be  drawn  from  the  acknowledged  fact, 
that  the  people,  down  to  the  third  or  fourth  century,  retained, 
and  not  unfrequently  exercised,  the  right  even  of  deposing 
one  from  the  ministry.  The  controversy  of  the  people  of 
Corinth  with  their  pastors,  as  indicated  in  the  epistle  of 

30  Presbyteris  advolvi,  et  caris  Dei  adgeniculari  omnibus  fratribus  lega- 
tiones  deprecationis  suae  injungere. — Z)e  Poejiitentia,  c.  9. 

31  Cyprian,  Epist.  59.     Tlie  same  fact  is  also  asserted  by  Du  Pin,  in  the 
passage  quoted  above.  32  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  5,  c.  28. 

33  Euseb.,  Ecch  Hist.,  Lib.  6,  c.  43.  34  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  6,  c.  44. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  105 

Clement,  lias  been  already  mentioned;  and  the  case  of 
Valens  deposed  from  the  ministry  by  the  church  at  Philip- 
pi.  To  these  may  be  added  the  instances  of  Martialis  and 
Basilides,  bishops  of  Leon  and  Astorga  in  Spain,  who- were 
deposed  by  their  people  for  idolatry.  From  this  sentence 
of  the  people  they  appealed  to  several  bishops  in  Africa. 
These,  after  hearing  the  case  in  common  council,  A.  D. 
258,  affirmed  the  act  of  the  people.  The  result  of  their 
deliberations  was  communicated  by  Cyprian,  from  which 
decision  the  extract  below  is  taken,  in  which  he  fully 
accords  to  the  people  the  right  both  to  choose  the  worthy 
and  to  depose  the  unworthy.  Eligendi  dignos  sacerdotes 
et  indignos  recusandi.  "  Many  other  such  like  passages," 
says  King,  "  are  found  in  that  synodical  epistle,  which 
flatly  asserts  the  people's  power  to  depose  a  wicked  and 
scandalous  bishop,"  ^5  and  with  him  Bingham  substantially 
agrees.36  And  again,  by  Dr.  Barrow,  of  the  Episcopal 
church.  "In  reason,  the  nature  of  any  spiritual  office 
consisting  in  instruction  in  truth,  and  guidance  in  virtue 
toward  the  attainment  of  salvation,  if  any  man  doth  lead 
into  pernicious  error  or  impiety,  he  thereby  ceaseth  to  be 
capable  of  such  office ;  as  a  blind  man,  by  being  so,  doth 
cease  to  be  a  guide.  No  man  can  be  bound  to  follow  any 
one  into  the  ditch,  or  to  obey  any  one  in  prejudice  to  his 
own  salvation.  If  any  pastor  should  teach  bad  doctrine,  or 
prescribe  bad  practice,  his  people  may  reject  and  disobey 
him."37 

35  Prim.  Chris.,  P.  1,  c.  G.  The  following  passage  is  an  exairiple  of  such 
an  assertion,  Inde  per  temporum  et  successionum  vices  episcoporum 
ordinatio  et  ecclesiae  ratio  decurrit  ut  ccclesia  super  eptscopos  constituatur 
et  omnis  actus  ecclesiae  p.er  eosdem  praepositos  gubernetur.  Cum  hoc 
itaque  lege  divina  fuiidatum  sit,  miror  quosdam,  audaci  temeritate,  sic  mihi 
scribere  voluisse  ut  ecclesiae  nomine  literas  facerent,  quando  ecciesia  in 
episcopo  et  clero  et  in  omnibus  stantibus  [i,  e.,  who  had  apostatized]  sit 
constituta.— Ep.  33/al,  27.    ' 

36  Book  16,  c  1.    Comp,  Neander's  Allgem,  Kirch.  Gesch.,  11,  p.  341. 

37  Barrow's  Works,  Vol,  I,  p.  74^1.  Comp,,  also,  Pertsch,  Kirch.  Hist., 
I,  p.  370,    Mosheim,  Can.  Recht,  p.  60. 


106  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

From  these  censures  of  a  popular  assembly  an  appeal 
would  be  made,  as  in  the  case  before  us,  to  a  synodical 
council,  or  to  the  neighboring  bishops.  For  this  reason, 
they  are  sometimes  represented  as  the  ecclesiastical  court 
for  the  trial  of  the  clergy.  Such  they  were  at  a  subsequent 
period;  but  in  the  primitive  church  it  was,  as  appears  from 
the  foregoing  authorities,  the  right  of  the  church  to  exer- 
cise her  discipline  over  both  laity  and  clergy.  The  greater 
includes  the  less.  The  right  to  depose  a  scandalous  bishop, 
of  necessity  supposes  the  right  to  expel  from  their  commu- 
nion an  unworthy  member  of  humbler  rank.  As,  in  the 
highest  act  of  ecclesiastical  censure,  so  in  smaller  offences, 
the  conclusion  is  irresistible,  that  the  discipline  of  the 
church  was  conducted  with  the  strictest  regard  to  the 
popular  rights  and  privileges  of  its  members. 

3.  Argument  from  the  authority  of  ecclesiastical  writers. 

Authority  is  not  argument.  But  the  opinion  of  those 
who  have  made  ecclesiastical  history  the  study  of  their 
life,  is  worthy  of  our  confidence.  The  concurring  opinion 
of  many  such  becomes  a  valid  reason  for  our  belief.  What 
then  is  their  authority  ? 

Valesius,  the  learned  commentator  on  Eusebius,  says 
that  "  the  people's  suffrages  were  required  when  any  one 
was  to  be  received  into  the  church,  who  for  any  fault  had 
been  excommunicated."^*^  This  is  said  in  relation  to  the 
usage  of  the  church  in  the  third  century. 

The  authority  of  Du  Pin,  the  distinguished  historian  of 
the  Roman  Catholic  communion,  whose  opinion  is  worthy 
of  all  confidence,  is  to  the  same  effect;  that  the  discipline 
of  the  church  continued,  in  the  third  century,  to  be  admin- 
istered by  the  church  as  it  had  been  from  the  beginning.39 

Simonis,  profoundly  learned  on  all  points  relating  to 
ecclesiastical  usage,  says  that,  "  this  church  discipline  was 

38  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  6,  44.    Com.  Lib.  5, 28. 

39  Antiqua  Disciplina,  Diss.  3;  c.  1, 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  107 

SO  administered  that  not  only  the  clergy,  especially  the 
bishops,  and  in  important  cases  a  council  of  them,  but 
also  the  churchy  in  every  case^  gave  their  decision  and  ap- 
probation, in  order  that  nothing  might  be  done  through 
prejudice  and  private  interest  by  being  submitted  to  the 
clergy  and  bishops  alone." '^^ 

Baumgarten  ascribes  to  the  church  alone  the  entire  con- 
trol of  ecclesiastical  censures,  from  the  earliest  periods  of 
the  church  down  to  the  time  of  Cyprian,  when  he  supposes 
each  case  to  have  been  first  adjudicated  by  the  church,  and 
afterwards  by  the  clergy  and  bishops. ^^ 

Mosheim  is  full  and  explicit  to  the  same  point.  He  not 
only  ascribes  to  the  church  the  power  of  enacting  their 
own  laws  and  choosing  their  own  officers,  but  of  excluding 
and  receiving  such  as  were  the  subjects  of  discipline, 
malos  et  degeneros  et  excludendi  et  recipiendi,  and  adds  that 
nothing  of  any  moment  was  transacted  or  decided  without 
their  knowledge  and  consent. '^^ 

Planck  asserts  that,  so  late  as  the  middle  of  the  third 
century,  the  church  still  exercised  their  original  right  of 
controlling  the  bans  of  the  church,  both  in  the  exclusion 
of  offenders,  and  in  the  restitution  of  penitents. ^3 

Guerike  also  states,  that,  in  the  third  century,  the  duty 
of  excluding  from  the  church  and  of  restoring  to  their 
communion,  devolved  still  upon  the  laity.^^ 

The  views  of  Neander  again  are  sufficiently  apparent 
from,  quotations  which  have  already  been  made  in  the 
progress  of  this  work.  More  thoroughly  conversant  with 
the  writings  of  the  fathers,  and  more  profoundly  skilled  in 
the  government  and  history  of  the  church  than  any  man 

40  V^orlesungen,  tiber  Christ.  Alterthum.,  p.  426. 

41  Erlauterungen,  Christ.  Alterthum.,  §  122.     Comp.  also  ^  36,  and~pr65. 

42  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  Prim.,  ^  45. 

43  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  pp.  180,  508.  Comp.  pp.  129—140,  and  Fuch's 
Bibliotheca,  1,  p.  43,  seq. 

44  Kirch.  Gesch.,  p.  94,  100,  101,  2d  edit. 


108  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

living,  he  not  only  ascribes  the  discipline  of  offenders 
originally"  to  the  deliberation  and  action  of  the  church,  hut 
states,  moreover,  that  this  right  was  retained  by  the  laity 
in  the  middle  of  the  third  century,  after  the  rise  of  the 
Episcopal  power,  and  the  consequent  change  in  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  church.  "  The  participation  of  the  laity 
in  the  concerns  of  the  church  was  hot  yet  altogether  ex- 
cluded. One  of  these  concerns  was  the  restoration  of  the 
lapsed  to  the  communion  of  the  church.  The  examination 
which  was  instituted  in  connection  with  this  restoration 
was  also  held  before  the  whole  church."  ^^ 

These  authorities  might  be  extended  almost  indefinitely ; 
but  enough  have  been  cited  to  show  that,  in  the  opinion  of 
those  who  are  most  competent  to  decide,  the  sacred  right 
of  directing  the  discipline  of  the  church  was,  from  the 
beginning,  exercised  by  the  whole  body  of  believers  be- 
longing to  the  community ;  and  that  they  continued,  in  the 
third  century,  in  the  exercise  of  the  same  prerogative. 

4.  Argument  from  the  fact,  that  the  entire  government 
of  the  church  was  under  the  control  of  its  members. 

The  popular  government  of  the  primitive  church  per- 
vaded their  ecclesiastical  polity  throughout.  The  members 
of  the  church  unitedly  enacted  their  laws,  elected  their 
officers,  established  their  judicature,  and  managed  all  their 
affairs  by  their  mutual  suffrages.  "  With  them  resided  the 
power  of  enacting  laws,  as  also  of  adopting  or  rejecting 
whatever  might  be  proposed  in  the  general  assemblies,  and 
of  expelling  and  again  receiving  into  communion  any  de- 
praved or  unworthy  members.  In  a  word,  nothing  what- 
ever, of  any  moment,  could  be  determined  on,  or  carried 
into  effect,  without  their  knowledge  and  concurrence. ""^^ 

On  this  point  we  must  be  permitted  again  to  adduce  the 
authority   of    Neander.     After    showing   at   length,    that, 

.  45  Allgem.  Kirch.  Gesch.,  1,  p.  342,  2d  edit. 
46  Mosheim,  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  1;  $  45. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  109 

agreeably  to  the  spirit  of  the  primitive  church,  all  were  re- 
garded as  different  organs  and  members  of  one  body,  and 
actuated  by  one  and  the  same  spirit,  he  adds,  "  But  from 
the  nature  of  the  religious  life  and  of  the  Christian  church, 
it  is  hardly  possible  to  draw  the  inference  naturally  that 
the  government  should  have  been  entrusted  to  the  hands  of 
a  single  one.  The  monarchical  form  of  government  ac- 
cords not  with  the  spirit  of  the  Christian  church ^  ^^ 

Kiddle  gives  the  following  sketch  of  the  constitution  and 
government  of  the  church  at  the  beginning  of  the  second 
century.  "  The  subordinate  government,  &c., of  each  partic- 
ular church  was  vested  in  itself;  that  is  to  say,  the  whole 
body  elected  its  minister  and  officers,  and  was  consulted 
concerning  all  matters  of  importance."  This  is  said  of  the 
church  at  the  close  of  the  first  century.^^ 

Even  the  "judicious"  Hooker,  the  great  expounder  of 
the  ecclesiastical  polity  of  the  Episcopal  church,  distinctly 
declares,  that  "  the  general  consent  of  all  "  is  requisite 
for  the  ratification  of  the  laws  of  the  church.  "  Laws 
could  they  never  be  without  the  consent  of  the  whole 
church  to  be  guided  by  them  ;  whereunto  both  nature,  and 
the  practice  of  the  church  of  God  set  down  m  Scripture,  is 
found  so  consonant,  that  God  himself  would  not  impose  his 
own  laws  upon  his  people  by  the  hands  of  Moses  without 
their  free  and  open  consent."  ^^ 

From  all  which,  in  connection  with  what  has  already 
been  said  in  the  fore  part  of  this  work,  the  popular  admin- 
istration of  the  government  is  sufficiently  manifest.  Even 
the  minute  concerns  of  the  church  were  submitted  to  the 
direction  of  the  popular  voice.  Is  a  delegate  to  be  sent  out, 
he  goes,  not  as  the  servant  of  the  bishop,  but  as  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  church,  chosen  to  this  service  by  public  vote.^*^ 
Is  a  letter  missive  to  be  issued  from  one  church  to  another, 

47  Allgem.  Gesch.,  1,  p.  312,  2d.  edit.        48  Chronology,  p.  13. 

49  Ecclesiastical  Polity,  B.  VUI.  &«  Ignatius,  ad.  Phil.,  c.  10.. 

10 


110  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHIJIICH. 

it  is  done  in  the  name  of  the  church  ;  and,  when  rec-eived, 
is  publicly  read.^i  In  short,  nothing  is  done  without  the 
consent  of  the  church.  Even  Cyprian,  the  great  advocate 
for  Episcopal  precedence  in  the  middle  of  the  third  century, 
protests  to  his  clergy,  that,  "  from  his  first  coming  to  his 
bishopric,  he  had  ever  resolved  to  do  nothing  according  to 
his  own  private  will,  without  the  advice  of  the  clergy  and 
the  approbation  of  the  people."  ^2 

The  point  now  under  consideration  is  very  clearly  pre- 
sented by  an  old  English  writer,  of  Cambridge  in  Eng- 
land, whose  work  on  Primitive  Episcopacy  evinces  a 
familiar  acquaintance  with  the  early  history  of  the  church 
that  entitles  his  conclusions  to  great  respect.  "  In  the 
apostle's  times,  and  divers  ages  after,  all  the  people,  under 
the  inspection  of  one  bishop,  were  wont  to  meet  together, 
not  only  for  worship,  but  for  other  administrations.  All 
public  acts  passed  at  assemblies  of  the  whole  people.  They 
were  consulted  with,  their  concurrence  was  thought 
necessary,  and  their  presence  required,  that  nothing  might 
pass  without  their  cognizance,  satisfaction  and  consent. 
This  was  observed,  not  only  in  elections  of  officers,  but 
in  ordinations  and  censures,  in  admission  of  members  and 
reconciling  penitents,  and  in  debates  and  consultations 
about  other  emergences.  There  is  such  evidence  of  this, 
particularly  in  Cyprian,  almost  in  every  one  of  his  epistles^ 

51  The  letters  of  Clement  and  Polycarp  were  written  by  the  authority 
of  the  churches  respectively.    Comp.  Euseb.,Eccl.  Hist.,  4,  c.  15.    5,  c.  1, 
and  c.  24.     With  the  epistle  of  Clement,  five  delegates  were  sent  also  from  ■ 
the  church  at  Rome,  to  that  of  Corinth,  to  attempt  to  reconcile  the  dis- 
sensions in  that  church.    §  59. 

52  Ad  id  vero  quod  scripserunt  mihi  compresbyteri  nostri,  Donatus  et 
Fortunatus,  Novatus  et  Gordius,  solus  rescribere  nihil  potui ;  quando  a 
primordio  episcopatus  mei  statuerim  nihil  sine  consilio  vestro,  et  sine 
consensu  plebis  meae  privatim  sententia  gerere  ;  sed  cum  ad  vos  per  Dei 
gratiam  venero,  tunc  de  eis  quae  vel  gesta  sunt,  vel  gerenda  sicut  honor 
mutuus  poscit  in  commune  tractabimus. — Cyprian,  Ep.  5.  Comp.  Ep.  3, 55 , 
Daille  on  the  Fathers,^.  330.    London. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  Ill 

that  it  is  acknowledged  by  modern  writers  of  all  sorts, 
such  as  are  most  learned  and  best  acquainted  with  an- 
tiquity." ^^ 

If  then  the  sanction  of  the  church  was  sought  in  the 
minutest  matters,  much  more  must  not  an  act  of  such 
solemnity,  as  that  of  expelling  the  guilty,  and  of  restoring 
the  penitent,  have  been  submitted  to  their  direction  ?  Is  a 
Christian  salutation  to  a  sister  church  communicated  by 
public  authority,  commending,  it  may  be,  a  faithful  brother 
to  their  communion,  and  have  they  no  voice  in  rejecting  a 
fallen  and  reprobate  member  from  their  communion  ?  Is 
the  sanction  of  that  body  requisite  before  one  from  another 
church  can  be  received  to  their  communion,  and  have  they 
no  voice  in  restoring  the  penitent  who  returns  confessing 
his  sins  and  entreating  the  enjoyment  of  the  same 
privileges  ? 

All  this  fully  accords  with  the  usage  of  the  apostolical 
churches,  and  is  evidently  a  continuation  of  the  same 
policy.  Whether  deacons  are  to  be  appointed,  or  an  apos- 
tle or  presbyters  chosen,  it  is  done  by  vote  of  the  church. 
A  case  for  discipline  occurs ;  it  is  submitted  to  the  church. 
A  dissension  arises.  Acts  15;  this  also  is  referred  to  the 
church.  The  decision  is  made  up  as  seemeth  good  to  the 
whole  church.  The  result  is  communicated  by  the  apostles, 
the  elders,  and  the  brethren  jointly.  The  brethren  of  the 
church  have  a  part  in  all  ecclesiastical  concerns ;  nothing 
is  transacted  without  their  approbation  and  consent.  The 
sovereign  power  is  vested  in  the  people.  They  are  con- 
stituted by  the  apostles  themselves  the  guardians  of  the 
church,  holding  in  their  hands  the  keys  of  the  kingdom,  to 
open  and  to  shut,  to  bind  and  to  loose  at  their  discretion. 
So  the  apostles  and  primitive  fathers  evidently  understood 

S3  Clarkson's  Primitive  Episcopacy^  pp.  171,  172.  The  authority  of  tlie 
Magdeburg  Centuriators  is  also  to  the  same  •  effect.  Comp.  Chap.  7, 
Cent.  II,  and  III. 


112  THE    PRIBIITIVE    CHURCH. 

and  administered  the  government  of  the  church.  Neither 
Peter,  nor  any  apostle,  nor  bishop,  nor  presbyter,  but  each 
and  every  disciple  of  Christ,  is  the  rock  on  which  he 
would  build  his  church.  Such  is  Origen's  interpretation 
of  the  passage  in  Matt.  16  :  18.  "  Every  disciple  of  Christ 
is  that  rock,  and  upon  all  such  the  whole  doctrine  of  the 
church,  and  of  its  corresponding  polity  is  built.  If  you 
suppose  it  to  be  built  upon  Peter  alone,  what  say  you  of 
John,  that  son  of  thnnder ;  and  of  each  of  the  apostles  ? 
Will  yon  presume  to  say,  that  the  gates  of  hell  will  prevail 
against  the  other  apostles,  and  against  all  the  saints,  but 
not  against  Peter  ?  Rather  is  not  this,  and  that  other 
declaration,  '  On  this  rock  I  will  build  my  church,'  appli- 
cable to  each  and  every  one  alike  ?"  ^'* 

Such  are  the  arguments  which  we  offer  in  defence  of  the 
proposition,  that  any  body  of  believers,  associated  together 
in  the  enjoyment  of  religious  rights  and  privileges,  was 
originally  an  ecclesiastical  court,  for  the  trial  of  oflences.^^ 
This  is  asserted  by  the  great  Du  Pin,  of  the  Roman  Cath- 
olic church.  It  is  admitted  by  respectable  authorities^ 
King,  Cave,  Riddle,  &c.,  of  the  Episcopal  church.  It  is 
generally  acknowledged  by  Protestants  of  other  religious 
denominations.  It  is  implied  or  asserted  in  various  pas- 
sages from  the  early  fathers.  They  speak  of  it,  not  as  a 
controverted  point,  but  as  an  admitted  principle.  The 
sanction  of  the  primitive  church  was  sought  in  all  the  less 
important  concerns  of  the  church.  They  controlled  also, 
and  frequently  exercised,  the  highest  acts  of  ecclesiastical 
censure,  in  deposing  their  own  pastors  and  bishops  who 
proved  themselves  unworthy  of  their  sacred  office.  And, 
finally,  the  church  was  from  the  beginning  authorized  and 

54  Comment,  in  Matt.,  Tom.  3,  p.  524.. 

55  It  was  a  doctrine  of  TertuUian,  that  where  three  are  assembled  to- 
gether in  the  name  of  Christ,  there  they  constitute  a  church,  though  only 
belonging  to  the  laity.  Three  were  sufficient  for  this  purpose.  Ubi  tres, 
ecclesia  est,  licet  laici. — Exhort,  ad  Castitat.,  c.  7,  522.     De  Fuga,  c.  14. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  113 

instructed  by  the  apostle  Paul,  to  administer  discipline  to 
an  offending  member.  With  the  approbation  of  the. great 
apostle,  they  pronounced  upon  the  transgressor  the  sentence 
of  excommunication,  and  again,  on  receiving  satisfactory 
evidence  of  penitence,  restored  him  to  their  communion 
and  fellowship. 

With  the  question  of  expediency,  in  all  this,  we  have  no 
concern.  If  any  prefer  the  Episcopal,  to  a  free  and  popu- 
lar system  of  government,  they  have  an  undoubted  right  to 
resign  the  exercise  of  this,  and  of  all  their  rights,  to  the 
control  of  the  diocesan.  But  when  they  go  on  to  assert 
that  the  exercise  of  such  authority  belongs  to  him  by 
the  divine  right  of  Episcopacy,  we  rest  assured  that  they 
have  begun  to  teach  for  doctrine  the  commandments  of 
men.  From  the  beginning  it  was  not  so.  "  Full  well  ye 
reject  the  commandment  of  God,  that  ye  may  keep  your 
own  tradition." 

MODE  OF  ADMlSSIOr^. 

This  w^as  at  first  extremely  simple ;  consisting  only  in 
the  profession  of  faith  in  Christ,  and  baptism.  The  church, 
howev^er,  at  an  early  period,  learned  the  necessity  of  exer- 
cising greater  caution  in  receiving  men  into  her  communion. 
Taught  by  their  own  bitter  experience,  they  began  to  require, 
in  the  candidate  for  admission  to  their  communion,  a  com- 
petent acquaintance  with  religious  truth,  and  a  trial  of  his 
character  for  a  considerable  space  of  time.  From  undue 
laxness,  they  passed  into  the  opposite  extreme,  of  excessive 
rigor  in  prescribing  rules  and  qualifications  for  communion. 
These  austerities  gave  rise  to  the  .order  of  catechumens 
towards  the  close  of  the  second  century,  and  to  a  long 
train  of  formalities  preliminary  to  an  union  with  the  church. 

In  immediate  connection  with  these  rites,  and  as  a  part 
of  the  same  discipline,  began  the  system  of  penance  in  the 
treatment  of  the  lapsed — persons  who  had  incurred  the 
10=^ 


114  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

censure  of  the  church.  By  this  system  a  return  to  the 
church  was  rendered  even  more  difficuk  than  their  original 
entrance  to  it.  This  penitentiary  system  was  rapidly  de- 
veloped. In  the  course  of  the  third  century  it  was  brought 
into  full  operation,  while  the  people  still  retained  much  in- 
fluence over  the  penal  inflictions  of  the  church  upon  trans- 
gressors.^6  But  it  is  not  our  purpose  to  treat  upon  this 
subject.  The  system  is  detailed  at  length  in  the  author's 
Antiquities  of  the  Christian  Church,  Chap.  XVII,  to  which 
the  reader  is  referred  for  information  in  relation  to  the 
oflfences  which  were  the  subject  of  discipline,  the  penalties 
inflicted,  and  the  manner  of  restoring  penitents. 

The  entire  regimen  however  passed,  in  process  of  time, 
from  the  people  into  the  hands  of  the  clergy,  especially  of 
the  bishops.  It  was  lost  in  the  general  extinction  of  the 
rights  and  privileges  of  the  church,  and  the  overthrow  of 
its  primitive  apostolical  constitution ;  upon  the  ruins  of 
which  w^as  reared  the  Episcopal  hierarchy,  first  in  the  form 
of  an  "  ambitious  oligarchy,"  as  Riddle  very  justly  denom- 
inates it,  and  then,  of  a  tyrannical  despotism. 

II.  Usurpation  of  discipline  by  the  priesthood. 

In  the  fourth  century,  the  clergy,  by  a  discipline  peculiar 
to  themselves,  and  applicable  only  to  persons  belonging  to 
their  order,  found  means  of  relieving  themselves  from  the 
penalties  of  the  protracted  penance  which  was  exacted  of 
those  who  fell  under  the  censure  of  the  church.  Suspension 
and  the  lesser  excommunication  or  degradation,  and  the 
like,  were  substituted  as  the  penalties  of  the  clergy,  instead 
of  the  rigorous  penance  of  the  laity.  And  though  in  some 
respects  it  was  claimed,  that  the  discipline  of  the  clergy- 
was  more  severe  than  that  of  the  laity,  the  practical  effect  of 
this  discrimination,  which  was  gradually  introduced,  was  to 

56  Planck,  Gesellschafts-Verfass.,   1,  pp.  129—140.    Fuch's  Bibliotheca, 
1,  pp.  43,  44,  45—50,  403. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  115 

separate  the  clergy  from  the  laity,  and  to  bring  the  latter 
more  under  the  power  of  the  priesthood.^''  It  was  at  once 
the  occasion  of  intolerance  in  the  one  hand,  and  of  oppres- 
sion to  the  other. 

The  confederation  of  the  churches  in  synods  and  coun- 
cils had  also  much  influence  in  producing  the  same  result. 
In  these  conventions,  laws  and  regulations  were  enacted 
for  the  government  and  discipline  of  the  churches  of  the 
province.  And  though  the  churches,  severally,  still  re- 
tained the  right  of  regulating  their  own  polity,  as  circum- 
stances might  require,  they  seldom  claimed  the  exercise  of 
their  prerogatives.  The  result  was,  that  the  law-making 
power  was  transferred,  in  a  great  degree,  from  the  people 
to  the  provincial  synods,  where  again  the  authority  of  the 
people  was  lost  in  the  overpowering  influence  of  bishops 
and  clergy.  These  affected  at  first  only  to  act  as  the  rep- 
resentatives of  their  respective  churches,  by  authority 
delegated  to  them  by  their  constituents. ^8  But  they  soon 
assumed  a  loftier  tone.  Claiming  for  themselves  the  guidance 
of  the  Spirit  of  God,  they  professed  to  speak  and  act  ac- 
cording to  the  teachings  of  this  divine  agent.     Their  decis- 

"  Planck,  Gesellschafts-Verfass.,  1,  pp.  342 — 346.  Comp.  c.  8^  pp. 
125—141. 

^8  Tertullian  describes  such  assemblies  as  bodies  representative  of  the 
whole  Christian  church.  Ipsa  repraesentatio  totius  nominis  Christiani. — 
De  Jejtm.,  c,  13,  p.  552. 

In  the  infancy,  indeed,  of  councils,  the  bishops  did  not  scruple  to 
acknowledge  that  they  appeared  there  merely  as  the  ministers  or  legates 
of  their  respective  churches,  and  that  they  were,  in  fact,  nothing  more 
than  representatives  acting  from  instructions  ;  but  it  was  not  long  before 
this  humble  language  began,  by  little  and  little,  to  be  exchanged  for  a 
loftier  tone.  They  at  length  took  upon  themselves  to  assert  that  they 
were  the  legitimate  successors  of  the  apostles  themselves,  and  might, 
consequently,  of  their  own  proper  authority,  dictate  laws  to  the  Christian 
flock.  To  what  extent  the  inconveniences  and  evils  arising  out  of  these 
preposterous  pretensions  reached  in  after  times,  is  too  well  known  to  re- 
quire any  particular  notice  in  this  ])\ace.—  3Iosheim,  De  Rebtis  Christ., 
Saec.  II,  §  23. 


116  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ions,  therefore,  instead  of  being  the  judgment  of  ignorant 
and  erring  men,  were  the  dictates  of  unerring  wisdom. 
And  the  people,  in  exchange  for  the  government  which  they 
had  been  accustomed  to  prescribe  for  themselves,  were 
kindly  provided  with  an  administration  which  claimed  to 
be  directed  by  wisdom  from  above. ^^  Taught  thus  and 
disciplined  in  that  great  lesson  of  bigotry  and  spiritual 
despotism, — passive  submission  to  persons  ordained  of  God 
for  the  good  of  the  churchy — they  were  prepared  to  resign 
their  original  rights  and  privileges  into  the  hands  of  the 
hierarchy. 

There  is  the  fullest  evidence  that  the  action  of  the  laity 
was  requisite,  as  late  as  the  middle  of  the  third  century, 
in  all  disciplinary  proceedings  of  the  church.  By  the  be- 
ginning of  the  fourth,  however,  this  cardinal  right,  through 
the  operation  of  causes,  which  have  been  briefly  mentioned 
and  which  may  be  more  fully  specified  hereafter,  was 
greatly  abridged,  and  shortly  became  wholly  lost.  This 
fact  strongly  illustrates  the  progress  of  the  Episcopal 
hierarchy.  While  the  right  of  the  laity  is  yet  undisputed, 
the  power  of  the  bishop  begins  at  first  to  be  partially 
asserted,  and  occasionally  admitted;  the  people  occupying 
a  neutral  position  between  submission  and  open  hostility. 
But,  from  disuse  to  denial,  and  from  denial  to  the  extinc- 
tion of  neglected  privileges  and  powers,  the  descent  is 
natural,  short  and  rapid.  From  about  the  middle  of  the 
fourth  century,  accordingly,  the  bishops  assumed  the  control 
of  the  whole  penal  jurisdiction  of  the  laity,  opening  and 
shutting  at  pleasure  the  doors  of  the  church,  inflicting  sen- 
tence of  excommunication,  and  prescribing,  at  their  dis- 
cretion, the  austerities  of  penance  ;  and  again  absolving 
the  penitents,  and  restoring  them  to  the  church  by  their 
own  arbitrary  power.^^     The  people,  accordingly,  no  longer 

59  Planck,  Gesellschafts-Verfass.,  1,  pp.  448-432. 
"0  Planck,  Gesellschafts-Verfass,,  1,  509. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  117 

having  any  part  in  the  trial  of  offences,  ceased  to  watch 
for  the  purity  of  the  church,  connived  at  offences,  and  con- 
cealed the  offender ;  not  caring-  to  interfere  with  the  pre- 
rogatives of  the  bishop,  in  which  they  had  no  further 
interest.  The  speedy  and  sad  corruption  of  the  church 
was  but  the  natural  consequence  of  this  loose  and  arbitrary 
discipline.  Nor  can  it  be  doubted,  that  this  was  one  efficient 
cause  of  that  degeneracy  which  succeeded. 

The  ecclesiastical  discipline,  if  such  indeed  it  can  be 
called,  now  appears  in  total  contrast  with  that  of  the  church 
under  the  apostles.  Then,  the  supreme  authority  was  vest- 
ed in  the  people  ;  now,  it  is  with  the  clergy.  The  church 
then  enacted  her  own  laws, and  administered  her  discipline; 
the  pastor,  as  the  executive  officer,  acting  in  accordance 
with  her  will  for  the  promotion  of  her  purity  and  of  her 
prosperity.  The  clergy  are  now  the  supreme  arbiters  of 
the  church,  from  whom  all  laws  emanate ;  and  the  execu- 
tioners of  their  own  arbitrary  enactments.  The  church  is 
no  longer  a  free  and  independent  republic,  extending  to  its 
constituents  the  rights  and  privileges  of  religious  liberty ; 
but  a  spiritual  monarchy  under  the  power  of  an  ambitious 
hierarchy  whose  will  is  law,  which  the  people  are  taught 
to  receive,  as  if  meting  out  to  them,  with  wisdom  from  on 
high,  the  mercy  and  the  justice,  the  goodness  and  severity 
of  their  righteous  Lawgiver  and  Judge.  They  are  wholly 
disfranchised  by  the  priesthood,  who  have  assumed  the 
prerogatives  of  the  prophetic  Antichrist, who  "as  God  sitteth 
in  the  temple  of  God,  showing  himself  that  he  is  God." 


118  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 


REMARKS. 

1.  It  is  the  right  and  the  duty  of  the  members  of  every 
church,  themselves  to  administer  the  discipline  of  their 
own  body. 

Each  church  is  a  voluntary  association,  formed  for  the 
mutual  enjoyment  of  the  privileges  and  ordinances  of  re- 
ligion. To  them  belongs  the  right  to  prescribe  the  condi- 
tions of  a  connection  with  their  communion,  or  of  exclusion 
from  it,  as  may  seem  good  to  them,  in  conformity  with  the 
principles  of  the  gospel.  The  right  vests  in  them  collect- 
ively. As  an  independent  association,  they  are  competent, 
if  they  please,  to  surrender  the  administration  of  this  right 
to  another —  to  a  consistory,  to  a  presbytery,  or  to  a  presbyter 
or  bishop.  But  no  man,  or  body  of  men,  can  lawfully 
usurp  authority  over  them,  or  embarrass  the  free  exercise 
of  this  religious  right.  Any  interference  with  these 
privileges  is  an  unjust  infringement  of  their  religious 
liberty. 

The  duty  of  carefully  exercising  a  Christian  watch  and 
fellowship,  one  toward  another,  and  of  excluding  those 
who  walk  unworthily,  is  most  clearly  enforced  in  the 
Scriptures ;  and  however  it  may  be  disregarded  in  partic- 
ular instances,  it  is  generally  acknowledged  to  be  one  im- 
portant means  of  preserving  the  purity  of  the  church,  and 
of  promoting  the  honor  of  religion. 

2.  Ecclesiastical  censure  is  not  a  penal  infliction,  but  a 
moral  discipline  for  the  reformation  of  the  offender  and  the 
honor  of  religion. 

This  thought  has  been  already  presented,  but  it  should 
be  borne  distinctly  in  mind.  Church  discipline  seeks,  in  the 
kindness  of  Christian  love,  to  recover  a  fallen  brother,  to 
aid  him  in  his  spiritual  conflicts,  and  to  save  him  from 
hopeless  ruin.     In  its  simplicity  and  moral  efficacy,  if  not 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  119 

in  principle,  the  discipline  of  the  apostolical  and  primitive 
churches  differed  totally  from  that  complicated  system  of 
penance  into  which  it  degenerated  under  the  hierarchy. 
The  austerities  of  this  system,  with  its  pains  and  privations, 
have  more  the  appearance  of  penal  inflictions  to  deter 
others  from  sin,  than  of  Christian  efforts  to  reclaim  the 
guilty.  The  penance  of  the  ancient  church  was  often,  in 
the  hands  of  the  priesthood,  an  engine  of  torture  with 
which  to  molest  an  adversary,  or  to  gratify  private  resent- 
ment. But  the  Christian  love  that  administers  ecclesiasti- 
cal censure,  in  the  spirit  of  the  apostolical  rule,  superior  to 
all  sinister  motives,  seeks  only  the  reformation  of  the 
offender,  and  the  honor  of  that  sacred  cause  which  he  has 
dishonored.61 

3.  This  mode  of  discipline  is  the  best  safeguard  against 
the  introduction  of  had  men  into  the  church. 

The  members  of  the  church  who  are  associated  with  the 
candidate  in  the  relations  and  pursuits  of  private  life,  best 
know  his  character.  They  form  the  most  unbiased  judg- 
ment of  his  qualifications ;  and  have  less  to  overrule  their 
decisions  than  any  other  men.  Commit,  therefore,  the 
high  trust  of  receiving  men  into  the  sacred  relations  of  the 
church  of  Christ,  neither  to  bishop  nor  presbyter,  or  pastor, 
but  to  the  united,  unbiased  decision  of  the  members  of  that 
communion. 

4.  Discipline  administered  by  the  brethren  of  the  church 
is  the  best  means  of  securing  the  kind  and  candid  trial  of 
those  who  may  be  the  subjects  of  ecclesiastical  censure. 

Cases  of  this  kind  are  often  involved  in  great  difficulty, 
and  always  require  to  be  treated  with  peculiar  delicacy  and 
impartiality.  These  ends  of  impartial  justice  the  wisdom 
of  the  world  seeks  to  secure  by  the  verdict  of  a  jury.  The 
brethren  of  the  church,  in  like  manner,  are  the  safest  tri- 
bunal for  the  impeachment  of  those  who  walk  unworthily. 

61  Venema,  Institutiones  Hist.  Eccles.,  Ill,  §  188,  p.  214,  seq. 


120  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Commit  to  any  other  hands  this  high  trust,  and  it  is  in 
danger  either  of  being  totally  neglected,  or  else  perverted 
by  some  private  bias,  or  partizan  spirit. 

5.  The  mode  of  discipline  now  under  consideration 
relieves  the  pastor  from  unwelcome  responsibilities,  both  in 
the  admission  of  members  and  in  the  treatment  of  offences. 

He  has  a  delicate  and  responsible  duty  to  perform  towards 
those  who  present  themselves  for  admission  to  the  church. 
He  is  not  satisfied,  it  may  be,  with  regard  to  the  qualifica- 
tions of  the  candidate,  and  yet  this  is  only  an  impression 
received  from  a  great  variety  of  considerations  which  can- 
not well  be  expressed.  But  to  refuse  the  applicant,  without 
assigning  good  and  sufficient  reasons,  may  expose  him  to 
the  charge  of  uncharitableness,  and  involve  him  in  great 
difficulty.  Under  this  circumstance,  no  railing  accusation 
can  be  brought  against  him,  provided  the  case  is  submitted 
to  the  impartial  decision  of  the  church. 

And  again,  in  the  treatment  of  offences,  the  pastor  should 
always  be  able  to  take  shelter  under  the  authority  of  the 
church.  Like  Paul,  in  the  case  of  the  Corinthians,  he 
may  be  obliged  to  rebuke  them  for  their  neglect,  and  to 
urge  them  to  their  duty.  But  he  should  never  appear  as 
the  accuser  and  prosecutor  of  any  of  his  people.  The  trial 
should  begin  and  end  with  the  church,  who  ought  always 
to  be  ready  to  deliver  their  pastor  from  duties  so  difficult 
and  delicate,  which  belong  not  to  his  sacred  office. 

6.  Discipline  so  administered  serves  to  promote  the 
peace  of  the  church. 

An  unruly  member  of  the  church  often  has  the  address 
to  raise  a  violent  part5^  In  every  communion  may  be  found 
a  certain  number  of  hasty,  restless  spirits,  who  are  ever 
read}'  to  rally  at  the  cry  of  bigotry,  intolerance,  persecution, 
however  unjustly  raised.  The  contention  may  rise  high 
and  rend  the  whole  church  asunder,  if  the  minister  alone 
becomes,  in  their  fiery  zeal,  the  object  of  attack.    The  only 


DISCIPLINE    B-y    THE    CHURCHES.  121 

safe  appeal  now  is  to  the  calm,  deliberate  decision  of  the 
whole  body  of  the  church.  Here  the  case  is  open  for  a  full 
discussion  and  a  fair  decision,  which,  more  than  any  thing 
else,  has  power  to  silence  the  rage  of  faction,  and  to  calm 
the  tumults  of  party.  It  is  in  vain  to  contend  against  the 
sovereign  power  of  the  niajority.  The  charge  of  acting 
from  personal  prejudice  and  private  animosity  lies  not 
against  them,  as  against  a  single  individual.  Thus  a 
church  may  gather  about  their  pastor  for  the  defence  of  his 
character,  for  his  encouragement  in  the  faithful  discharge 
of  his  duty,  and  for  the  preservation  of  their  own  peace,  by 
silencing,  the  clamors  of  any  restless  malcontents. 

7.  The  only  mode  that  has  ever  been  devised  for  pre- 
serving the  discipline  of  the  church  is  to  submit  it  to  the 
control,  not  of  the  clergy,  but  of  the  members  themselves. 

The  consequence  of  depriving  the  members  of  the  church 
of  a  participation  in  its  discipline,  soon  after  the  "rise  of 
Episcopacy,  was  this ; — they  became  remiss  in  their  atten- 
tion to  the  scandals  of  their  brethren,  and  withdrew  their 
watch  over  each  other. *^2  ^^d  since  that  day,  when  was  it 
ever  known  that  any  just  discipline  was  maintained  in  any 
church  under  a  national  establishment  and  an  independent 
priesthood  ?  What  is  the  discipline  of  the  Episcopal  church 
even  in  this  country,  where,  without  a  state  religion,  or  an 
independent  priesthood,  the  laity  have  little  or  no  concern 
v/ith  the  admission  of  members  to  their  communion,  or  the 
exclusion  of  them  from  it  ?  Let  the  reader  weigh  well 
this  consideration.  It  suggests  one  of  our  strong  and  most 
important  objections  to  the  ecclesiastical  polity  of  the 
Episcopal  church.^3     "Why  do  the   malcontents   of  other 

62  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  p.  599,  seq. 

63  Some  of  the  clergy  of  that  communion,  we  understand,  are  accustomed 
to  keep  a  private  list  of  those  who  are  wont  to  receive  the  sacred  elements 
at  his  hands,  and  if  any  are  found  to  walk  unworthily,  their  names  are 
silently  stricken  off  from  the  roll,  and  their  communion  with  the  church 
is  dropped  in  this  informal  manner.    Such  pastoral  fidelity,  duly  exercised, 


122  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

denominations,  men  of  equivocal  cliaracter,if  not  of  tarnished 
reputation,  why  do  they  in  such  numbers  take  refuge  in 
that  church?  We  wish  to  bring  no  unjust  accusation 
against  that  denomination,  but  it  seems  to  be  admitted,  by 
members  of  their  own  communion,  that  there  is  no  disci- 
pline in  the  Episcopal  church.  "  Every  church  warden  in 
every  parish  in  England  is  called  upon  once  a  year  to  attend 
the  visitation  of  his  archdeacon.  At  this  time  oaths  are 
tendered  to  him  respecting  his  different  duties ;  and  among 
other  things  he  sv/ears,  that  he  will  present  to  the  arch- 
deacon the  names  of  all  such  inhabitants  of  his  parish  as 
are  leading  notoriously  immoral  lives.  This  oath  is  regu- 
larly taken  once  a  year  by  every  church  warden  in  every 
parish  in  England ;  yet  I  believe  that  such  a  thing  as  any 
single  presentation  for  notoriously  immoral  conduct  has 
scarcely  been  heard  of  for  a  century.  "^^  Another  of  the 
Tractarians  complains  in  the  following  terms  of  this  total 
neglect  of  discipline  in  the  Episcopal  church.  "  I  think 
the  church  has,  in  a  measure,  forgotten  its  own  principles, 
as  declared  in  the  sixteenth  century ;  nay,  under  stranger 
circumstances,  as  far  as  I  know,  than  have  attended  any  of 
the  errors  and  corruptions  of  the  Papists.  Grievous  as  are 
their  declensions  from  primitive  usage,  I  never  heard,  in 
any  case,  of  their  practice  directly  contradicting  their 
services ;  whereas,  we  go  on  lamenting,  once  a  year,  the 
absence  of  discipline  in  our  church,  yet  do  not  even  dream 
of  taking  any  one  step  towards  its  restoration."  ^^ 

8.  This  mode  of  discipline  gives  spiritual  life  and  power 
to  the  church. 

is  worthy  of  all  consideration.  But  can  it  be  expected,  as  a  general  rule^ 
to  accomplish  the  high  ends  of  faithful  Christian  discipline  ?  Is  it  the 
discipline  of  the  New  Testament  ?  Or  can  it  be  expected  of  any  class  of 
men,  that  they  will  have  the  independence  to  be  faithful  here  ?  A  magna- 
nimity how  rare  ! 

64  Tracts  for  the  Times,  No.  59,  p.  416.  65  ibid,,  No.  41,  p.  297. 


DISCIPLINE    BY    THE    CHURCHES.  123 

The  moral  efficacy  of  any  body  of  believers  depends, 
not  upon  their  number,  but  upon  the  purity  of  their 
lives,  and  their  fidelity  in  duty.  A  church  composed  of 
men  who  are  a  living  exemplification  of  the  power  of  the 
Christian  religion  by  their  holy  lives,  and  by  a  faithful 
discharge  of  their  duties, — such  a  church,  and  such  only,  is 
what  the  Lord  Jesus  designed  his  church  should  be, — the 
pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth.  Now  this  being  conceded, 
under  what  form  of  discipline  do  you  find  the  purest  church? 
Where  do  you  discover  the  greatest  circumspection  in  the 
admission  of  members  ?  Where,  the  strictest  watch  and 
fellowship,  the  kindest  efforts  to  recover  the  fallen,  and 
the  most  faithful  endeavors  to  defend  the  honor  of  the 
Christian  name,  and  for  the  revival  of  pure  and  undefiled 
religion  ?  Without  intending  any  invidious  reflection,  may 
we  request  of  the  reader  a  careful  consideration  of  this  sub- 
ject ?  Let  him  remember,  also,  what  his  own  observation 
may  have  taught  him,  that  a  single  case  of  discipline, 
rightly  conducted,  gives  new  life  and  power  to  the  whole 
body,  quickening  every  member  into  newness  of  life  in  the 
service  of  the  Lord.  Let  him  estimate,  if  he  can,  the  moral 
efficacy  of  a  living  church,  quickened  into  healthful,  holy 
action,  compared  with  one  that  has  a  name  to  live  and  is 
dead.  Let  him  ponder  well  these  considerations,  before 
he  decides  to  go  over  to  a  communion  that  tolerates  a 
general  neglect  of  the  Christian  duty  which  we  have  been 
contemplating. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

EQUALITY  AI^B  IDENTITY  OF  BISHOPS  AND  PRESBYTERS. 

Soon  after  the  ascension  of  our  Lord,  it  became  expe- 
dient for  the  brethren  to  appoint  a  certain  class  of  officers 
to  superintend  the  secular  concerns  of  their  fraternity. 
These  were  denominated  didy.ovoi,  servants,  ministers^ 
deacons.  In  process  of  time,  another  order  of  men  arose 
among  them,  whose  duty  it  was  to  superintend  the 
religious  interests  of  the  church.  These  were  denomi- 
nated ol  TTQoiojd^usvoi,  Rom.  12 :  8.  1  Thess.  5:  12;  ot 
i^yovuefoi,  Heb.  13:  7.  17,  24;  TiQeoSviegoi,  Acts  20:  17; 
^sniaaonoi,  Acts  20;  28,  equivalent  to  the  terms,  p7-esidents, 
leaders,  elders,  overseers.  These  terms  all  indicate  one  and 
the  same  office,  that  of  a  presiding  officer  in  their  religious 
assemblies.  This  class  of  officers  is  usually  designated,  by 
the  apostles  and  the  earliest  ecclesiastical  writers,  as  pres' 
byters  and  bishops, — names  which  are  used  interchangeably 
and  indiscriminately  to  denote  one  and  the  same  office. 

The  appropriate  duty  of  the  bishop  or  presbyter  at  first 
was,  not?  to  teach  or  to  preach,  but  to  preside  over  the 
church,  and  to  preserve  order  in  their  assemblies.  "  They 
were  originally  chosen  as  in  the  synagogue,  not  so  much 
for  the  instruction  and  edification  of  the  church,  as  for 
taking  the  lead  in  its  general  government."  i     The  neces- 

1  Neander's  Apost.  Kirch.,  I,  p.  44,  seq.  Comp.  Siegel,  Handbuch,  IV, 
p.  223.  Ziegler's  Versuch,  der  Kirchlichen  Verfassungsformen,  pp.  3—12. 
Rothe;  Anfange,I,p.lo3.  So,  also,  Gieseler,  Rheinwald,  Bohmer,Winer,&c. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  125 

sity  of  such  a  presiding  officer  in  the  church  at  Corinth  is 
sufficiently  apparent  from  the  apostle's  rebuke  of  their 
irregularities.  "  How  is  it,  then,  brethren  ?  when  ye  conne 
together,  every  one  of  you  hath  a  psalm,  hath  a  doctrine, 
hath  a  revelation,  hath  an  interpretation.  Let  all  things 
be  done  unto  edifying."  1  Cor.  14 :  26.  The  apostle, 
however,  allows  all  to  prophesy,  to  exercise  their  spiritual 
gifts;  and  only  requires  them  to  speak  "one  by  one,"  that 
all  things  may  be  done  decently  and  in  order.  The  ordi- 
nary officers  of  the  apostolical  church,  then,  comprised  two 
distinct  classes  or  orders.  The  one  was  known  by  the 
name  of  deacons ;  the  other,  designated  by  various  titles, 
of  which  the  ones  most  frequently  used  are  presbyters  and 
bishops. 

Our  proposition  is,  that  Bishops  and  Presbyters,  according 
to  the  usage  of  the  apostles  and  of  the  earliest  ecclesiastical 
writers,  are  identical  and  convertible  terms,  denoting  one 
and  the  same  class  or  grade  of  officers.  In  this  propo- 
sition we  join  issue  with  the  Episcopalians,  who  assert 
that  bishops  were  divinely  appointed  an  order  of  men 
superior  to  that  of  presbyters.  We,  on  the  other  hand, 
affirm  that  presbyters  are  the  highest  grade  of  officers 
known  in  the  apostolical  and  primitive  churches ;  and  that 
the  title  of  bishop  was  originally  only  another  name  for 
precisely  the  same  office.  Even  after  a  distinction  began 
to  be  made  between  presbyter  and  bishop,  Ave  affirm  that 
the  latter  were  not  a  peculiar  grade  distinct  from  presby- 
ters and  superior  to  them;  but  merely  one  of  the  presbyters 
appointed  from  among  them  to  preside  over  the  college  of 
his  fellow-presbyters,  belonging  still  to  the  same  order, 
performing  only  the  same  pastoral  duties,  and  exercising 
only  the  same  spiritual  functions ;  like  the  moderator 
of  a  modern  presbytery  or  association,  who  still  retains  a 
ministerial  parit}^  with  his  brethren,  in  the  duties,  rights 
and  privileges  of  the  sacred  office.  Our  sources  of  argu- 
11# 


126  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ment  in  defence  of  this  general  proposition  are  two-fold, 
— Scripture  and  History. 

I.  The  scriptural  argument  for  the  equality  and  identity 
of  bishops  and  presbyters.  This  may  be  comprised  in  the 
following  heads; 

1.  The  appellations  and  titles  of  a  presbyter  are  used  in- 
discriminately and  interchangeably  with  those  of  a  bishop. 

2.  A  presbyter  is  required  to  possess  the  same  qualifica- 
tions as  a  bishop. 

3.  The  official  duties  of  a  presbyter  are  the  same  as 
those  of  a  bishop. 

4.  There  was,  in  the  apostolical  churches,  no  ordinary 
and  permanent  grade  or  class  of  ministers  superior  to  that 
of  presbyters. 

1.  The  appellations  and  titles  of  a  presbyter  are  used 
interchangeably  with  those  of  a  bishop. 

One  of  the  most  unequivocal  proof-texts  in  the  Scriptures 
is  found  in  Acts  20:  17,  compared  with  verse '28.  Paul, 
on  his  journey  to  Jerusalem,  sent  from  Miletus  and  called 
the  presbyters,  nqeu^vTaQovg,  elders,  of  Ephesus.  And  to 
these  same  presbyters,  when  they  had  come,  he  says,  in 
his  affectionate  counsel  to  them,  "  Take  heed  to  yourselves, 
and  to  all  the  flock  over  which  the.  Holy  Ghost  hath  made 
you  hishops,  Eniaxonovg,  to  feed  the  church  of  God  which 
he  hath  purchased  with  his  own  blood."  Both  terms  are 
here  used  in  the  same  sentence  with  reference  to  the  same 
men. 
■  We  have  another  instance,  equally  clear,  of  the  indis- 
criminate use  of  the  terms,  in  the  first  chapter  of  Paul's 
epistle  to  Titus.  "  For  this  cause  I  left  thee  in  Crete,  that 
thou  shouldst  set  in  order  the  things  that  are  wanting,  and 
ordain  presbyters,  noea^vreoovg,  in  every  city,  as  I  had 
appointed   thee."     Then   follows  an  enumeration  of  the 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  127 

qualifications  which  are  requisite  in  these  presbyters,  one 
of  which  is  given  in  these  words :  ''  A  hishop  must  be 
blameless,  as  the  steward  of  God." 

Again,  it  is  worthy  of  particular  attention,  that  the 
apostle,  in  his  instructions  to  Timothy,  1  Tim.  3:  1 — 7, 
respecting  the  qualifications  of  a  bishop,  proceeds  immedi- 
ately to  specify  those  of  deaconSy  the  second  class  of  officers 
in  the  church,  without  making  the  least  allusion  to 
presbyters,  though  confessedly  giving  instructions  for  the 
appointment  of  the  appropriate  officers  of  the  church. 
This  omission  was  not  a  mere  oversight  in  the  writer, 
who  subsequently  alludes  to  the  presbytery,  4:  14,  and 
commends  those  that  rule  well,  5  :  17.  In  these  passages 
the  apostle  evidently  has  in  mind  the  same  offices,  and 
uses  the  terms,  bishop  and  presbyter,  as  identical  in 
meaning. 

To  all  the  saints  in  Christ  Jesus  which  are  at  Philippi, 
again,  the  apostle  addresses  his  salutation, — to  the  saints, 
with  the  bishops  and  deacons,  that  is,  to  the  church  and  the 
officers  of  the  church.  Here,  again,  as  in  all  the  New 
Testament,  these  officers  are  distributed  into  two  classes. 
For,  had  there  been  at  Philippi  a  third  order  of  ministers, 
superior  to  the  deacons,  it  is  incredible  that  the  apostle 
coiild  have  omitted  all  allusion  to  them,  in  a  salutation  so 
specific.  In  truth,  we  must  either  charge  the  apostle  with 
neglecting  an  important  and  superior  class  of  officers  in 
the  church  at  Philippi, — a  neglect  totally  inconsistent  with 
the  character  of  the  apostle, — or  we  must  admit  that  the 
presbyters  are  addressed  in  the  salutation  of  the  bishops  as 
one  and  the  samxO  with  them. 

The  supposition,  again,  that  these  were  bishops  of  the 
Episcopal  order,  involves  the  absurdity  of  a  plurality  of 
bishops  over  the  same  church ;  a  supposition  at  variance 
with  the  first  principles  of  diocesan  Episcopacy,  which 


128  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

admits  of  but  ojie  m  a  ciiy.^  This  difficulty  appears  to 
have  forcibly  impressed  the  mind  of  Chrysostom.  "  How 
is  this?"  exclaims  the  eloquent  patriarch.  "Were  there 
many  bishops  in  the  same  city  ?  By  no  means ;  but  he 
calls  the  presbyters  by  this  name  [bishops] ;  for  at  that 
time  this  was  the  common  appellation  of  both."  3 

Finally,  we  appeal  to  1  Pet.  5 :  2,  3,  where  the  apostle, 
as  a  fellow-presbyter,  exhorts  the  presbyters  to  feed  the 
flock  of  God,  taking  the  oversight  of  them^  eniaxondwjsg, 
acting  the  bishop,  performing  the  duties  of  a  bishop  over 
them,  requiring  of  them  the  same  duties  which  the  apostle 
Paul  enjoins  upon  the  presbyter-bishops  of  Ephesus.  As 
at  Ephesus,  where  Paul  gave  his  charge  to  those  presby- 
ters, so  here,  again,  it  is  evident  that  there  could  have 
been  no  bishop  over  those  whom  Peter  commits  to  the 
oversight  of  these  presbyters.  But  who  are  the  flock  in 
this  instance  ?  Plainly,  any  body  of  those  Christians  scat- 
tered throughout  Pontus,  Galatia,  Cappadocia,  Asia,  and 
Bithynia,  to  whom  he  addresses  his  epistle.  These  Chris- 
tians, throughout  this  vast  extent  of  country,  are  committed 
to  the  care  of  their  presbyters,  who  are  severally  to  act  as 
the  pastors  and  bishops  of  their  respective  charges. 

Thus  it  appears  that  the  appellations  and  titles  of  a 
presbyter  are  used  indiscriminately  and  interchangeably 
with  those  of  a  bishop.  In  the  same  sentence,  even,  and 
generally  throughout  the  writings  of  the  apostles,  these  are 
perfectly  convertible  terms,  as  different  names  of  the  same 

2  Epiphanius  tells  us,  that  Peter  and  Paul  were  both  bishops  of  Rome  at 
once  :  by  which  it  is  plain  he  took  the  title  of  bishop  in  another  sense  than 
now  it  is  used ;  for  now,  and  so  for  a  long  time  upward,  two  bishops  can 
no  more  possess  one  see,  than  two  hedge-sparrows  dwell  in  one  bush. 
St.  Peter's  time  was  a  little  too  early  for  bishops  to  rise. — Hales'  Works, 
Vol.  I,  p.  110. 

^  ^vv  STTKTyoTiotg  xal  dlaxoi'oig.  Tl  tovto  ;  f^nac  irolsMg 
Tto'hXol  enluxonov  rjauv ;  Odda/iiCog,  aklu  Tovg  Tigea^vregovg 
ouTO^s  hy.dXeaE'  t6t6  yccgTecog  Ixoivon'ovv  loTg  uvofxaai — In  Phil. 
1:  1,  p.  199,  seq.,  Tom.  11. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  129 

thing.  This  fact  is  very  forcibly  exhibited  in  the  following 
summary  from  the  Rev.  Dr.  Mason.  "  That  the  terms 
bishop  and  presbyter,  in  their  application  to  the  first  class  of 
officers,  are  perfectly  convertible,  the  one  pointing  out  the 
very  same  class  of  rulers  with  the  other,  is  as  evident  as 
the  sun  'shining in  his  strength.'  Timothy  was  instructed 
by  the  apostle  Paul  in  the  qualities  which  were  to  be 
required  in  those  who  desired  the  office  of  a  bishop.*  Paul 
and  Barnabas  ordained  presbyters  in  every  church^  which 
they  had  founded.  Titus  is  directed  .to  ordai?i  in  every 
city  PRESBYTERS  wlio"  are  to  be  blameless,  the  husband  of  one 
wife.  And  the' reason  of  so  strict  a  scrutiny  into  character 
is  thus  rendered,  j^r  a  bishop  must  be  blameless.X  If  this 
does  not  identify  the  bishop  with  the  presbyter,  in  the  name 
of  common  sense,  what  can  do  it?  Suppose  a  law,  pointing 
out  the  qualifications  of  a  sheriff,  were  to  say,  a  sheriff  must 
be  a  man  of  pure  character,  of  great  activity,  and  resolute 
spirit ;  for  it  is  highly  necessary  that  a  governor  be  of  un- 
spotted reputation,  &c.,  the  bench  and  bar  would  be  rather 
puzzled  for  a  construction,  and  would  be  compelled  to 
conclude,  either  that  something  had  been  left  out  in  tran- 
scribing the  law,  or  that  governor  and  sheriff  meant  the 
same  sort  of  officer ;  or  that  their  honors  of  the  legislature 
had  taken  leave  of  their  wits.  The  case  is  not  a  whit 
stronger  than  the  case  of  presbyter  and  bishop  in  the 
epistle  to  Titus.  Again:  Paul,  when  on  his  last  journey 
to  Jerusalem,  sends  for  the  presbyters  of  Ephesus  to  meet 
him  at  Miletum,  and  there  enjoins  these  presbyters  to 
feed  the  church  of  God  over  which  the  Holy  Ghost  had 
made  them  bishops. '5'  It  appears,  then,  that  the  bishops  to 
whom  Paul  refers  in  his  instructions  to  Timothy,  were 
neither  more  nor  less  than  plain  presbyters.  To  a  man 
who  has  no  turn  to  serve,  no  interest  in  perverting  the 
obvious  meaning  of  words,  one  would  think  that  a  mathe- 

*  1  Tim.  3:1.        +  Acts  14  :  23.        X  Tit.  1:5.        $  Acts  20 :  11,  28. 


130  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

matical  demonstration  could  not  carry  more  satisfactory 
evidence."  4 

These  terms,  as  the  reader  must  have  noticed,  are  also 
distinct  and  definite,  descriptive  of  a  peculiar  office,  which 
he  is  in  no  danger  of  mistaking  for  any  other  in  the  apos- 
tolic church.  The  name  of  apostle  is  not  in  a  single 
instance  exchanged  for  that  of  bishop,  presbyter,  or  deacon, 
neither  are  the  terms,  bishop  and  presbyter,  confounded 
with  any  other  title,  and  for  the  very  obvious  reason,  that 
they  are  descriptive  of  an  office  distinct  from  all  others. 
Why,  then,  are  these  particular  terms  mutually  inter- 
changed one  with  the  other,  save  that  they  are  equally 
descriptive  of  the  same  office  ?  Indeed,  the  identity  of 
bishops  and  presbyters  in  name,  is  now  conceded  by 
Episcopalians  themselves.  "  That  presbyters  were  called 
bishops  I  readily  grant ;  that  this  prov^es  that  the  officer 
who  was  then  called  a  bishop,  and  consequently  the  office, 
was  the  same."^  "The  Episcopalian  cannot  be  found 
who  denies  the  interchangeable  employment  of  the  terms 
bishop  and  presbyter  in  the  New  Testament."  ^  Bishop 
Burnet  admits  that  they  "  are  used  promiscuously  by  the 
writers  of  the  first  two  centuries." 

The  scriptural  title  of  the  office  under  consideration  is 
usually  that  of  presbyter  or  elder.  It  had  long  been  in  use 
in  the  synagogue.  It  denoted  an  office  familiar  to  every 
Jew.  It  conveyed  precise  ideas  of  a  ruler  whose  powers 
were  well  defined  and  perfectly  understood.  When  adopted 
into  the  Christian  church,  its  meaning  must  hav^e  been 
easily  settled,  for  it  was  essentially  the  same  in  the  church 
as  previously  in  the  synagogue.  Accordingly,  it  constantly 
occurs  in  the  writings  of  the  apostle,  to  denote  an  officer 

4  Mason's  Works,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  41 — 43.  Comp.  King,  Prim.  Christ.,  pp. 
67,  68. 

5  Bowden,  Works  on  Episcop.,  Vol.  I,  p.  161. 

6  Chapman,  cited  in  Smyth's  Pres.  and  Prelacy,  p.  111. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  131 

familiarly  known,  but  having  no  resemblance  to  a  modern 
diocesan  bishop.  The  term,  bishop,  occurs  but  five  times 
in  the  New  Testament ;  and,  in  each  instance,  in  such  a 
connection  as  to  be  easily  identified  with  that  of  presbyter. 
The  former  is  derived  from  the  Greek  language,  the  latter 
has  a  Jewish  origin.  Accordingly,  it  is  worthy  of  notice, 
that  the  apostles,  when  addressing  Jewish  Christians,  use 
the  term  presbyter ;  but  in  their  addresses  to  Gentile  con- 
verts, they  adopt  the  term  bishop,  as  less  obnoxious  to  those 
who  spoke  the  Greek  language.'^ 

2.  A  presbyter  is  required  to  possess  the  same  qualifica- 
tions as  a  bishop. 

The  apostle  has  specified  at  length  the  qualifications, 
both  for  a  bishop  and  a  presbyter,  which,  for  the  sake  of 
comparison,  are  here  set  in  opposite  columns. 

QUALIFICATIONS. 
For  a  bishop,  1  Tim.  3  :  2—7.     For  a  presbyter,  Tit.  1  :  6—10. 
A  bishop  must  be  blameless,         If  any  be  blameless,  the  hiis- 
the  husband  of  one  wife,  one     band  of  one  wife,  having  faithful 
that  ruleth  well  his  own  house,     children,  (who  are)  not  accused 
having  his  children  in  subjection     of  riot,  or  unruly.    V.  6. 
with  all  gravity.     For  if  a  man 
know  not  how  to  rule  his  own 
house,  how  shall  he  take  care 
of  the  church  of  God?     Ys.  2, 
4,5. 

Vigilant,  vi/cpdliov,  circum-  A  lover  of  hospitality,  a  lover 
sped,  sober,  of  good  behaviour,  of  good  men,  sober,  just,  holy, 
given  to  hospitality,  apt  to  teach,  temperate,  holding  fast  the  faith- 
Vs.  2.  ful  word  as  he  hath  been  taught, 

that  he  may  be  able  by  sound 
doctrine  both  to  exhort,  and  to 
convince  the  gainsayers.  Vs. 
8,  9. 

7Rothe,  AnfSnge,  1,  218,  219.  Neander,  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  178,  179. 
Shoene,  Geschichtsforschungen,  1,  247 — 249.  Comp.  Bishop  Croft,  in 
Smyth's  Apost.  Succ,  p.  159. 


132  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Not  given  to  wine,  no  striker,         A  bishop  must  be  blameless, 
not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre,  but     as  the  steward  of  God,  not  self- 
patient,    emetxrj,    gentle,    not     willed,not  soon  angry,  not  given 
soon  angry,  not  a  btawler,  not     to  wine,  no  striker,  not  given  to 
covetous,  not  a  novice,  lest  being     filthy  lucre.     V.  7. 
lifted  up  with  pride,  he  fall  into 
the  condemnation  of  the  devil. 
Moreover,  he  must  have  a  good 
report  of  them  which  are  with- 
out, lest  he  fall  into  reproach, 
and    the    snare    of    the   devil. 
Vs.  3,  6,  7. 

The  qualifications  are  identical  throughout.  Is  a  blame- 
less, sober,  virtuous  life,  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit,  required 
of  a  bishop  ?  so  is  it  of  a  presbyter.  Whatever  is  needful 
for  the  onC)  is  equally  essential  for  the  other.  If,  then, 
there  be  this  wide  and  perpetual  distinction  between  the 
two,  which  Episcopacy  claims,  how  extraordinary  that  the 
.  apostle,  when  stating  the  qualifications  of  a  humble  presby- 
ter, should  not  abate  an  iota  from  those  which  are  requisite 
for  the  high  office  of  a  bishop.  How  strong  the-  presump-' 
tion,  rather  how  irresistible  the  conviction,  that  this  digni- 
tary of  the  church  was  totally  unknown  in  these  days  of 
primitive,  republican  simplicity  ;  and  that  the  bishop  of  the 
apostolic  churches  was  neither  more  nor  less  than  a  plain, 
simple  presbyter,  the  pastor  of  any  church  over  which  he 
may  have  been  duly  constituted.  The  conclusion,  there- 
fore, is  irresistible,  that,  in  the  case  before  us,  the  author  is 
only  designating  the  same  office  by  different  names,  of 
similar  import.  Such  is  the  decision  of  the  great  Jerome, 
the  most  learned  of  the  Latin  fathers.  "  In  both  epistles," 
referring  to  these  now  under  consideration,  "whether 
bishops  or  presbyters  are  to  be  elected  (for  with  the 
ancients,  bishops  and  presbyters  must  have  been  the  same, 


EQUALITY   OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  133 

the  one  beinof  descriptive  of  rank  and  the  other  of  age) 
they  are  required  to  be  the  husbands  of  one  wife."^ 

3.  The  duties  of  a  presbyter  are  the  same  as  those  of  a 
bishop. 

As  bishops  and  presbyters  are  called  by  the  same  names, 
and  required  to  possess  the  same  qualifications,  so  they  are 
summoned  to  discharge  the  same  official  duties.  Their 
duties,  severally  and  equally,  were  to  rule,  to  counsel  and 
instruct,  to  administer  the  ordinances,  and  to  ordain. 

{a)     Both  exercised  the  same  authority  over  the  church. 

If  bishops  were  known  in  the  apostolical  churches,  as  a 
distinct  order,  the  right  of  government  confessedly  belonged 
to  them.  We  have,  therefore,  only  to  show  that  presbyters 
exercised  the  same  right.  This  exercise  of  authority  is 
denoted  in  the  New  Testament  by  several  terms,  each  of 
which  is  distinctly  applied  to  presbyters. 

(a)  Such  is  riyeouai,  to  lead,  to  guide,  &c.  In  Heb.. 
13 :  7  and  17,  this  term  occurs.  Eemember  them  thafc 
have  the  rule  over  you,  idiv  r^yoviAevMv  v/am'.  Obey  them 
that  have  rule  over  you,  rdtg  r^yov^uei^oig  v/tmy.  The  first 
exhortation  to  the  Hebrews  the  apostle  enforces  by  an> 
immediate  reference  to.  their  deceased  pastors;  and  the 
second,  to  those  who  still  survived  to  watch  for  their  souls.. 
Is  the  reference  here  to  a  diocesan  bishop,  or  to  those 
presbyters  who  regularly  performed  to  these  Hebrews  the 
duties  of  a  presbyter  ? 

((?)  Another  term,  expressive  of  authority  over  the 
church  is,  ngoiaTi]/^,  to  preside,  to  rule.  Xenophon  uses 
this  verb  to  express  the  act  of  leading  or  ruling  an  ancient 

8  In  utraque  epistola  sive  episcopi  sive  presbyteri  (quanquam  apud 
veteres  iidem  episcopi  et  presbyteri  fuerint  quia  illud  nomen  dignitatis 
est,  hoc  aetatis)  jubentur  monogami  in  clerum  eligi. — Ejp,  83,  ad  Oceanum, 
Tom.  4,  p.  6i8. 

12 


134  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

chorus  and  an  army.^  Paul  the  apostle  uses  the  same  to 
express  the  authority  which  the  presbyters  exercised  as 
Tiilers  of  the  church. 

"  We  beseech  you,  brethren,  to  know  them  which  labor 
among  you  and  are  over  you,  nQoiaTa/^isrovg,  in  the  Lord." 
1  Thess.  5:  12.  Prelates  of  the  church  these  presbyters 
cannot  be,  for  there  are  several,  it  appears,  in  this  single 
city,  a  circumstance  totally  incompatible  with  the  organiza- 
tion of  diocesan  Episcopacy.  The  whole,  taken  together, 
is  descriptive,  not  of  a  bishop  in  his  see,  but  of  a  presbyter, 
a  pastor,  in  the  faithful  discharge  of  his  parochial  duties. 
Again,  "  Let  the  elders,  presbyters,  that  7'ule  well,  be 
accounted  worthy  of  double  honor,"  6i  jtuUog  nQoiajCoTeg 
nQsu^vTFQOi.  1  Tim.  5:  17.  Here  are  presbyters  ruling 
over  the  church  of  Ephesus,  where,  according  to  the 
Episcopal  theory,  Timothy,  as  bishop,  has  established  the 
seat  of  his  apostolical  see. 

()')  Another  term  of  frequent  occurrence,  in  writers 
both  sacred  and  profane  of  approved  authority,  is  TToifjaivco, 
to  feed,  metaphorically,  to  cherish,  to  provide  for,  to  rule,  to 
govern.  It  expresses  the  office,  and  comprehends  all  the 
duties  of  a  shepherd.  This  term  the  apostle  uses  in  his 
exhortation  to  the  presbyters  of  Ephesus  at  Miletus. 
"  Take  heed  to  yourselves,  and  to  all  the  flock  over  which 
the  Holy  Ghost  hath  made  you  bishops,  to  feed,  rcoifialveiv, 
the  church  of  God."  This  term,  beyond  all  question, 
expresses  the  power  of  government,  both  in  classic  and 
hellenistic  Greek.  Both  this  and  r^yoviiBvog  above  men- 
tioned, are  used  in  the  same  passage  to  express  the 
government  of  Christ,  the  chief  Shepherd,  over  his  people 
Israel.     "  Thou,  Bethlehem,  in  the  land  of  Juda,  art  not 

^  Ovdsp  of-wiov  laTv  '/oQOv  ts  tccxI  UTQaievnajog  TtQosaT&vai. 
"  Between  the  taking  the  lead  of  a  chorus  and  the  command  of  an  army/'  both 
expressed  by  nqoerrTavai,,  "  there  is  no  analogy." — Mem.,  3,  4,  5. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  135 

the  least  among  the  princes  of  Juda,  for  out  of  thee  shall 
come  a  governor,  t]yo{<f.ierogj  who  shall  rule,  notfjarei,  my 
people  Israel."  Without  further  illustration,  which  might 
easily  be  extended,  we  have  sufficient  evidence,  from  what 
has  been  said,  that  the  presbyters  were  invested  with  all 
the  authority  to  guide,  govern,  and  provide  for  the  church, 
which  the  bishop  himself  could  exercise.  The  very  same 
terms  which  express  the  highest  power  of  government,  and 
which  are  applied  to  the  office  even  of  the  great  Head  of 
the  church,  are  used  to  express  the  authority  of  presbyters, 
and  to  set  forth  the  power  with  which  they  are  invested  to 
rule  and  feed  the  church.  No  intimation  is  given  of  any 
higher  power  in  any  minister  of  Christ ;  neither  have  we 
terms  to  express  any  superior  authority.  The  conclusion 
therefore  is,  that  they  "  are  invested  with  the  highest 
power  of  government  known  in  the  church." 

{b)  Presbyters  are  the  authorized  counsellors  of  the 
church;  and,  in  connection  Avith  the  apostles,  constitute  the 
highest  court  of  appeal  for  the  settlement  of  controversies 
in  the  church. 

About  the  year  45  or  50,  a  spirited  controversy  arose  at 
Antioch,  which  threatened  to  rend  the  church,  and  to 
subvert  the  gospel  which  Paul  and  Barnabas  had  begun 
successfully  to  preach  to  the  Gentiles.  It  was  of  the 
utmost  importance  that  this  dispute  should  be  immediately 
and  finally  settled.  For  this  purpose,  a  delegation,  con- 
sisting of  Paul,  and  Barnabas,  and  others,  were  sent  from 
the  church  at  Antioch,  on  an  embassy  to  Jerusalem,  to 
submit  the  subject  under  discussion  to  the  decision  of  the 
church,  with  the  apostles  and  presbyters.  This  delegation 
was  kindly  received  by  the  church  at  Jerusalem,  with 
their  appropriate  officers,  the  apostles,  teachers,  and  elders, 
to  whom  the  whole  subject  of  the  dissension  at  Antioch 
was  submitted.  Peter,  John  and  James  were,  at  this 
time,  at  Jerusalem,  and,  with  Paul,  Barnabas  and  Titus, 


136  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

were  members  of  this  council.  The  subject  was  discussed  at 
length  on  both  sides,  but  the  concurring  opinions  of  Peter, 
Paul  and  James  finally  prevailed,  and  the  council  con- 
curred harmoniously  in  the  sentiments  expressed  by  these 
apostles.  It  is  observable,  however,  that  the  result  of  the 
council  is  given,  not  in  the  name  of  James,i<^  or  any  one  of 
the  apostles,  but  conjointly,  by  the  apostles,  and  presbyteis, 
and  brethren.  Acts  15 :  23.  With  this  decision  the  dele- 
gation return  to  Antioch,  accompanied  by  Judas  and  Silas. 
The  message  of  the  council  was  received  by  the  assembled 
church  at  Antioch,  who  gladly  acquiesced  in  that  decision. 
Throughout  the  whole  narrative  the  presbyters  appear  as 
the  authorized  counsellors  of  the  church,  and  the  only 
ordinary  officers  of  the  church,  whose  opinion  is  sought  in 
connection  with  that  of  the  apostles,  without  any  intimation 
of  an  intermediate  grade  of  bishops. i^ 

(c)  It  was  the  appropriate  office  of  the  presbyters  to 
administer  the  ordinances  of  the  church. 

It  is  inconceivable  that  the  performance  of  these  duties 
could  have  been  restricted  to  the  apostles.     The  sacrament 


10  That  James  did  not  draw  up  this  decree  as  "  the  head  of  the  church 
at  Jerusalem,"  and  as  his  ''  authoritative  sentence/'  is  unanswerably  shown 
by  Rev.  Dr.  Mason,  in  his  Review  of  Essays  on  Episcopacy.  The  amount 
of  the  argument  is,  that  James  simply  expresses  his  opinion,  verse  19 j 
just  as  Peter  and  Paul  had  done  before.  So  the  word,  itglro),  in  the  con- 
nection in  which  it  is  tised,  implies,  and  so  it  was  understood  by  the  sacred 
historian,  who,  in  Acts  16  :  4,  declares,  that  the  "  authoritative  sentence," 
the  decrees,  were  ordained  by  the  apostles  and  presbyters.  Comp.,  also, 
Acts  21  :  25.  The  case  was  not  referred  to  James,  neither  could  it  be 
submitted  to  him  as  bishop  of  Jerusalem,  Antioch  lying  entirely  without 
his  diocese,  even  on  the  supposition  that  Jerusalem  was  the  seat  of  his 
Episcopal  see.  The  authority  of  this  decree  was  also  acknowledged  in 
all  the  churches  of  Asia.  The  supposition,  that  it  was  the  official  and 
authoritative  sentence  of  James  as  bishop,  exalts  him  above  all  the  other 
apostles  who  were  members  of  the  council,  and  gives  him  a  power,  far- 
reaching  and  authoritative  beyond  that  which  belonged  to  St.  Peter  him- 
self, the  prelatical  head  of  the  church. 

Ji  Comp.  Rothe,  Anfange,  Vol.  I,  pp.  181,  182. 


EQUALITY    Of    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  137 

was  at  first  administered  daily ,1^  and  afterwards  on  each 
Lord's-day  as  a  part  of  public  worship,  and  occasionally  at 
other  times.  The  frequency  and  universality  of  the  ordi- 
nance of  necessity  required  that  it  should  be  administered 
by  the  ordinary  ministers  of  the  church.  Baptism,  by  a 
like  necessity,  devolved  upon  them.  The  numerous  and 
far-spreading  triumphs  of  the  gospel  utterly  forbid  the  idea, 
that  the  apostles,  few  in  number,  and  charged  with  the 
high  commission  of  preaching  the  gospel,  and  giving  them- 
selves wholly  to  this  as  their  appropriate  work,  should 
have  found  time  and  means  of  going  every  where,  and 
baptizing  with  their  own  hands  all  that  believed  on  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Besides,  they  appear  expressly  to 
have  disclaimed  this  work,  and  to  have  entrusted  the 
service  chiefly  to  other  hands.  *'  I  thank  God  that  I  bap- 
tized none  of  you  but  Crispus  and  Gains.  And  I  baptized 
also  the  household  of  Stephanas;  besides,  I  know  not 
whether  I  baptized  any  other.  For  Christ  sent  me,  not  to 
baptize,  but  to  preach."  1  Cor.  1 :  14 — 17.  Cornelius, 
again,  was  baptized,  not  by  Peter,  but  by  some  Christian 
disciples,  agreeably  to  his  command.  The  apostles,  indeed, 
Tcry  seldom  baptized.  The  inference  therefore  is,  that 
this  service  was  by  them  committed  to  the  presbyters,  the 
ordinary  officers  of  the  church. 

The  right  of  presbyters  to  administer  these  ordinances 
is  clearly  asserted  by  Augusti  and  other  writers  on  the 
subject,  as  stated  in  our  Christian  Antiquities. 13  Even 
the  Episcopalian,  who  claims  these  as  the  official  duties  of 
the  bishop,  and  maintains  that  the  presbyter  only  acted  as 
his  representative,  still  admits  that,  previous  to  the  establish- 
ment of  the  Episcopal  system,  these  duties  were  performed 
by  presbyters.  To  this  effect  is  one  of  the  latest  and 
best  authorities.  "  In  the  earliest  times,  when  no  formal 
distinction  between  enicrxoTtoi,  [bishops],  and  Ttgea^iTegot^ 
[presbyters'],  had  taken  place,  the  presbyters,  especially  the 
12  Ts'eander,  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  p.  30.  i3  chap.  Ill,  $  8. 

12* 


138  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Ttgosarmeg  [presiding  presbyters],  1  Tim.  5:  17,  discharged 
those  Episcopal  functions,  which,  afterwards,  when  a  care- 
ful distinction  of  ecclesiastical  officers  had  been  made,  they 
were  not  permitted  to  discharge,  otherwise  than  as  substi- 
tutes or  vicars  of  a  bishop.  Instances,  however,  do  some- 
times occur  in  later  times,  of  presbyters  having  officiated  in 
matters  which,  according  to  the  canon  law,  belonged  only 
to  the  Episcopal  office."  i'* 

Tertullian  asserts  the  right  even  of  the  laitT/  both  to  bap- 
tize, tingere,  and  to  administer  the  sacrament,  offers.  His 
reasons  are,  that  the  distinction  between  the  clergy  and 
laity  is  the  device  of  the  church, —  that  in  the  Scriptures 
all  are  priests  of  God,  and  that,  having  the  right  of  priest- 
hood in  themselves,  the  laity  are  at  liberty  to  perform  the 
offices   of  the   priesthood,  as   they  may  have    occasion. ^^ 

Even  Rigaltius,  a  Eoman  Catholic,  in  commenting  on 
this  passage,  admits  that  the  laity  were  permitted,  in  the 
primitive  church,  to  administer  the  ordinances,  though  it 
was  afterwards  forbidden  in  the  ecclesiastical  law.  The 
same  is  also  affirmed  by  the  learned  Erasmus. ^^     If  further 

14  Riddle,  Chr.  Antiquities,  p.  233. 

15  Vani  erimus  si  putaverimus,  quod  sacerdotibus  non  liceat,  laicislicere. 
Nonne  et  laici  sacerdotes  sumus  ?  Scriptum  est  regnum  quoque  nos  et 
sacerdotes  Deo  et  Patri  suo  fecit.  Differentiani  inter  ordinem  ct  plebem 
constituit  ecclesiae  auctoritas,  et  honor  per  ordinis  consessum  sanctificatus 
a  Deo,  ibi  ecclesiastic!  ordinis  non  est  confessus  ?  Et  offers  et  Unguis; 
sacerdos  es  tibi  solus.  Sed  ubi  tres,  ecclesia  est,  licet  laici ;  unusquisque 
de  sua  fide  vivit  5  nee  est  personarum  exceptio  apud  Deum,  quoniam  non 
auditores  legis  justificabuntur  a  Deo,  sed  factores,  secundum  quod  et 
apostolus  dicit.  Igitur  si  habes  jus  sacerdotis  in  temetipso  ubi  necesse 
sit,  habeas  oportet  etiam  disciplinam  sacerdotis,  ubi  necesse  sit  habere  jus 
sacerdotis. — De  Exhort.  Cast.,  c.  7.  The  same  thing  also  is  implied  in 
another  passage,  from  Tertullian,  De  Virgin.  Vel.,  c.  9,  in  which  he  denies 
to  icomen  this  right.  The  denial  of  the  right  to  loomen  is  an  admission  that 
it  was  the  authorized  prerogative  of  the  other  sex. 

16  Constat  temporibus  apostolorum  fuisse  synaxin  quam  laici  inter  se 
faciebant  adhibita  praecatione  et  benedictione,  et  eam  panem,  ut  est 
probabile,  appellabant  corpus  Domini,  ut  frequenter  etiam  sacris  literis 
cadem  vox  signo  et  rei  signatae  accommodatur  Fieri  enim  potest  ut  de 
hac  synaxi  loquatur  ibi  Origenes. — Ep.,  Lib.  26,  Tom.  3.    Origen,  in  the 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTEKS.  139 

evidence  of  the  fact  were  needful  it  is  given  at  length  by 
Grotius.i''' 

(d)     It  was  the  right  of  presbyters  to  ordain. 

What  reason  can  be  assigned,  may  we  ask,  why  they 
should  not  solemnize  this  rite,  as  well  as  perform  other 
ministerial  duties  ?  What  solemnity  has  the  rite  above  all 
others,  to  restrict  the  performance  of  it  to  a  certain  order 
of  the  priesthood  ?  It  is  the  right  of  presbyters  to  bap- 
tize, to  administer  the  sacrament,  to  instruct  and  provide 
for  all  the  spiritual  wants  of  the  flock  of  Christ,  as  the 
shepherd  and  bishop  of  their  souls,  and  have  they  no  right 
to  induct  into  the  sacred  office,  their  fellow-laborers  and 
successors  in  the  service  of  the  chief  Shepherd  ?is  Until 
instructed  to  the  contrary  by  the  word  of  God,  we  must 
presume  that  the  right  to  ordain  belongs  to  those  presbyters 
whom  the  Holy  Ghost  has  made  overseers  of  the  flock,  to 
feed  the  church  of  God. 

The  subject  of  our  present  inquiry  hardly  admits  of  an 
appeal  to  Scripture  ;  for  the  writers  of  the  New  Testament 
have  left  us  no  specific  instructions  on  this  subject. 
Neither  have  we  any  uniform  precedent  in  the  apostolical 
churches.  The  apostles  were  not  set  apart  by  any  solemnity 
beside  their  commission  from  Christ.  He  lifted  up  his 
hands,  indeed,  and  blessed  them,  as  he  was  parted  from 
them,  and  they  were  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost.  The  act 
was  significant  of  the  miraculous  communication  of  spiritual 
gifts,  as  in  various  other  instances,  Acts  8 :  17.  19:  6; 
but  had  no  analogy  to  Episcopal  ordination.  No  record  is 
given  of  any  formal  ordination  of  Matthias,  save  his  for- 
mal election  to  the  apostolical  office. 

middle  of  the  third  century,  was  permitted  by  two  bishops,  in  Palestine, 
to  explain  the  Scriptures  to  their  congregation,  though  he  had  never  been 
ordained.  And  many  bishops  of  the  East,  according  to  Eusebius,  allowed 
even  the  laity  to  preach.— iTccZ.  Hist.,  G,  c.  19.  Comp.  Neander,  Allge- 
mein.  Gesch.,  1,  p.  336,  2d  edit. 

17  Tract.,  De  Coenae  Administratione  xihi  pastores  non  sunt. 

19  Comp.  Gerhardi,  Loci  Theolog.,  Tom.  1:2,  p.  159. 


140  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

The  seven  deacons  were  inducted  into  their  office  by- 
prayer,  and  the  laying  on  of  hands.  This  may  have  been, 
and  perhaps  was,  the  usual  mode  of  setting  apart  any  to  a 
religious  service.  But  was  the  imposition  of  hands  exclu- 
sively ordination?  It  was  a  rite  familiar  to  the  Jews; 
and  denoted  either  a  henediction,  or  the  communication  of 
miraculous  gifts.  Jacob,  in  blessing  the  sons  of  Joseph, 
laid  his  hands  upon  their  head.  So  Jesus  took  young 
children  in  his  arms  and  blessed  them,  laying  his  hands  upon 
them.  So  Paul  and  Barnabas  were  dismissed,  to  go  on 
their  missionary  tour,  with  the  blessing  of  the  brethren  at 
Antioch,  by  the  laying  on  of  hands,  Acts  13  :  3.  But 
they  had  long  been  engaged  in  ministerial  duties. 

The  imposition  of  hands  appears  also  to  have  been  ad- 
mitted more  than  once,  as  in  the  case  of  Timothy,  upon 
whom  this  rite  was  performed  by  the  presbytery,  1  Tim. 
4:  14;  and  ,  again,  by  the  apostle  Paul,  2  Tim.  1:  6. 
Such  at  least  is  the  understanding  which  Rothe  has  of  the 
case. 19  This  fact  forbids  the  supposition,  that  the  laying 
on  of  hands  was  the  solemnizing  rite  in  the  act  of  ordina- 
tion, which,  according  to  all  ecclesiastical  usage,  cannot 
be  repeated.  In  the  passage.  Acts  14:  23,  the  phrase 
XSiQoiovriaavTeg,  &;c.,  has  been  already  shown  to  relate,  not 
to  the  consecration,  but  to  the  appointment  of  the  elders  in 
every  church.^o 

19  Rothe,  Anfange  der  Christ.  Kirch.,  p.  161. 

20  li  Where,  it  may  be  asked,  resides  the  right,  or  power,  and  in  what 
consists  the  importance  of  ordination  1  It  is  not  the  source  of  ministerial 
authority ;  for  that,  as  it  has  been  endeavored  to  show,  does  not,  and  can- 
not, rest  on  any  human  foundation.  It  does  not  admit  to  the  pastoral 
office  3  for  even  in  the  Episcopal  church,  the  title  to  office,  which  is  an 
indispensable  pre-requisite,  is  derived  from  the  nomination  of  tlie  person 
who  has  the  disposal  of  the  case.  It  is  not  office,  but  official  character, 
which  Episcopal  ordination  is  supposed  to  convey,  together  with  what- 
soever the  advocates  of  Episcopacy  may  choose  to  understand  by  those 
solemn  words,  used  by  the  ordaining  bishop  (an  application  of  them  which 
Nonconformists  deem  awfully  inappropriate),  '  Receive  the  Holy  Ghost.' 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  141 

The  imposition  of  hands  is  a  rite  derived  from  the  Jews, 
and  significant  of  the  communication  of  the  gifts  of  the 
Father.  This  venerable  rite  was  used  by  Christ,  and  with 
great  propriety  has  been  retained  in  the  Christian  church. 
But  with  the  apostles  it  was  the  customary  mode  of  im- 
parting the  xaQio^uara,  the  miraculous  gifts  of  that  age. 
So  the  converts  at  Samaria  received  the  Holy  Ghost,  Acts 
8 :  17,  and  in  the  like  manner,  when  Paul  had  laid  his 
hands  upon  the  Ephesian  converts,  the  Holy  Ghost  came 
upon  them,  and  they  spake  with  tongues  and  prophesied, 
Acts  19  :  6.  In  the  same  sense  is  to  be  understood  the  gift, 
/uQlafiia,  which  was  given  to  Timothy  by  prophecy,  with 
the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the  presbyter}^  1  Tim.  4 :  14. 
The  meaning  simply  is,  that  by  the  imposition  of  hands 
that  peculiar  spiritual  gift  denominated  prophecy  was  im- 

The  Jewish  ordination^  on  the  contrary,  although  sometimes  accompanied, 
when  administered  by  the  apostles,  by  the  communication  of  miraculous 
gifts,  was  in  itself  no  more  than  a  significant  form  of  benediction  on  ad- 
mission to  a  specific  appointment.  Of  this  nature  were  the  offices  connected 
with  the  synagogue,  in  contradistinction  from  those  of  the  priesthood. 
When  Paul  and  Barnabas  were  sent  out  from  the  church  at  Antioch,  they 
submitted  to  the  same  impressive  ceremony  :  not  surely  that  either  au- 
thority, or  power  of  any  kind,  or  miraculous  qualifications,  devolved  upon 
the  apostle  and  his  illustrious  companion,  by  virtue  of  the  imposition  of 
Presbyterian  hands  !  What  then  is  ordination  ?  The  answer  is,  a  decent 
and  becoming  solemnity,  adopted  from  the  Jewish  customs  by  the  primitive 
church,  significant  of  the  separation  of  an  individual  to  some  specific  ap- 
pointment in  the  Christian  ministry,  and  constituting  both  a  recognition  on 
the  part  of  the  officiating  presbyters,  of  the  ministerial  character  of  the 
person  appointed,  and  a  desirable  sanction  of  the  proceedings  of  the  church. 
It  is,  however,  something  more  than  a  mere  circumstance,  the  imposition 
of  hands  being  designed  to  express  that  fervent  benediction  which  accom- 
panied the  ceremony,  and  which  constitutes  the  true  spirit  of  the  rite.  To 
an  occasion  which,  when  the  awful  responsibility  of  the  pastoral  charge  is 
adequately  felt,  imparts  to  the  prayers  and  the  affectionate  aid  of  those 
who  are  fathers  and  brethren  in  the  ministry,  a  more  especial  value,  the 
sign  and  solemn  act  of  benediction  must  appear  peculiarly  appropriate. 
This  venerable  ceremony  may  also  be  regarded  as  a  sort  of  bond  of  fellow- 
ship among  the  churches  of  Clirist,  a  sign  of  unity,  and  an  act  of  brother- 
hood."— Conder^s  Protestant  Nonconfoi  mity ,  Vol.  I,  p.  242. 


142  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

parted  to  Timothy.^i  Of  the  same  import  are  2  Tim.  1  :  6, 
and  1  Tim.  5 :  22.  Both  relate  to  the  communication 
of  spiritual  gifts.  If  the  rite  of  ordination  was  implied 
and  included  in  it,  then  the  same  act  must  be  expressive 
both  of  this  induction  into  office,  and  of  the  communication 
of  spiritual  gifts.  Such  is  Neander's  explanation  of  the 
transaction.  "  The  consecration  to  offices  in  the  church  was 
conducted  in  the  following  manner.  After  those  persons  to 
whom  its  performance  belonged,  had  laid  their  hands  on 
the  head  of  the  candidate, — a  symbolic  action  borrowed 
from  the  Jewish  HD^np, —  they  besought  the  Lord  that  he 
would  grant,  what  this  symbol  denoted,  the  impartation  of 
the  gifts  of  his  Spirit  for  carrying  on  the  office  thus  under- 
taken in  his  name.  If,  as  was  presumed,  the  whole  cere- 
mony corresponded  to  its  intent,  and  the  requisite  disposition 
existed  in  those  for  whom  it  was  performed,  there  was 
reason  for  considering  the  communication  of  the  spiritual 
gifts  necessary  for  the  office,  as  connected  with  this  conse- 
cration performed  in  the  name  of  Christ.  And  since  Paul 
from  this  point  of  view  designated  the  whole  of  the  solemn 
proceeding  (without  separating  it  into  its  various  elements), 
by  that  which  was  its  external  symbol  (as,  in  scriptural 
phraseology,  a  single  act  of  a  transaction  consisting  of 
several  parts,  and  sometimes  that  which  was  most  striking 
to  the  senses,  is  often  mentioned  for  the  whole) ;  he  required 
of  Timothy  that  he  should  seek  to  revive  afresh  the  spirit- 
ual gifts  that  he  had  received  by  the  laying  on  of  hands."  22 

The  question  has  been  asked,  but  never  yet  answered, 
who  ordained  Apollos  ?  See  Acts  IS :  24—28.  1  Cor. 
3  :  5—7. 

It  remains  to  consider  the  case  of  Paul  the  apostle.  Of 
whom  did  he  receive  ordination  ?  One  Ananias,  a  disciple 
and  a  devout  man  according  to  the  law,  and  having  a  good 

21  Rothe,  Anfange,  1,  p.  161. 

22  Neander,  Apost.  Kirch,,  1,  213.    Comp.  pp.  88,  300,  3d  edit. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  143 

report  of  all  the  Jews  that  dwelt  at  Damascus, —  this  man 
prayed  and  laid  his  hands  upon  Paul,  and  straighticay  he 
preached  Christ  in  the  synagogues.  Soon  after  this  he 
spent  three  years  in  Arabia ;  then,  for  a  whole  year  together, 
he  and  Barnabas  assembled  themselves  with  the  church  and 
taught  much  people  at  Antioch,  Acts  11:  26.  After  all 
this,  he  was  sent  forth  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  on  his  mission 
to  the  Gentiles.  Preparatory  to  this  mission  he  was  recom- 
mended to  the  grace  of  God  for  the  work,  by  fasting, 
prayer  and  the  imposition  of  hands.  Even  this  was  not 
done  by  any  of  the  apostles,  but  by  certain  prophets  and 
teachers,  such  as  Simeon,  Lucius  and  Manaen.  Even  on 
the  supposition,  therefore,  that  these  were  the  solemnities 
of  Paul's  ordination,  he  was  not  Episcopally  ordained. 
But,  in  truth,  they  had  no  reference  whatever  to  his  ordi- 
nation. On  the  authority  of  his  divine  commission,  he 
had  already  been  a  preacher  for  several  years.  It  was, 
not  a  new  appointment,  but  an  appointment  to  a  new  work, 
which  in  no  degree  helps  forward  the  cause  of  prelatical 
ordination.23 

We  have,  indeed,  adopted  from  apostolic  usage,  a  signifi- 
cant, impressive  and  becoming  rite,  by  which  to  induct  one 
into  the  sacred  office  of  the  ministry.  The  rite  ought 
always  to  be  observed.  But  no  direct  precept,  no  uniform 
usage,  gives  to  this  rite  the  sanction  of  divine  authority; 
above  all,  there  is  not  in  all  the  Scriptures,  the  least  authority 
for  the  exclusive  administration  of  it  by  the  bishop  alone. 
The  idea  of  a  bishop  receiving  the  Holy  Ghost  in  regular 
succession  from  the  holy  apostles,  and  transmitting  the 
heavenly  grace  by  the  laying  on  of  his  hands  is  a  figment 
of  prelatical  pride  and  fanaticism,  unknown  either  in  Scrip- 
ture, or  in  the  earliest  ages  of  the  church.  But  the  histori- 
cal argument  in  relation  to  the  subject  of  ordination  by 
presbyters  is  considered  below. 

23  Bowdler's  Letters  on  Apostolical  Succession,  p.  22. 


144  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

The  claims  of  Episcopacy,  on  the  ground  of  an  original 
distinction  between  the  names  and  titles  of  bishop  and 
presbyters  seem  now  to  be  wholly  abandoned,  even  by 
Episcopalians  themselves.  "Even  if  Timothy,"  says  the 
Christian  Observer,  "  had  been  distinctly  called  bishop  of 
Ephesus,  and  Titus  bishop  of  Crete,  Episcopalians  would 
build  nothing  on  that  nomenclature  as  regards  Episcopacy, 
being  a  distinct  order  from  Presbytery,  for  presbyters  are 
admitted  to  have  been  called  bishops.  The  disparity  is 
proved  by  other  considerations."  24 

Even  the  church  of  Rome  acknowledges  the  identity  of 
the  orders  of  presbyter  and  bishop,  and  reckons  among  the 
three  greater,  or  holy  orders,  those  of  priest,  deacon,  and 
subdeacon. 

Bishop  Onderdonk  makes  also  the  same  concession. 
"  As  some  readers  of  this  essay  may  not  be  familiar  with 
the  controversy,  it  is  proper  to  advert  to  the  fact,  that  the 
name  '  bishops,'  which  now  designates  the  highest  grade  of 
the  ministry,  is  not  appropriated  to  that  office  in  Scripture. 
That  name  is  given  to  the  middle  order,  or  preslyters  ;  and 
all  that  we  read  in  the  New  Testament,  concerning  '  bishops ' 
(including,  of  course,  the  words  '  overseers  '  and  '  oversight,' 
which  have  the  same  derivation),  is  to  be  regarded  as  per- 
taining.to  that  middle  grade."  Bishops  and  presbyters  are 
identical,  then,  in  the  Scriptures,  according  to  our  American 
bishop,  who  traces  his  own  descent  from  a  higher  grade 
known  by  no  specific  name  in  Scripture,  such  as  the  apostles, 
and  Titus  and  Timothy,  and  the  angels  of  the  seven 
churches,  who  are  not  honored  with  any  official  title,  as  a 
distinct  order  or  grade.^^     The  whole  fabric  of  Episcopacy 

24  Christian  Observer,  1842,  p.  59. 

25  The  highest  grade  is  there  found  in  those  called  apostles,  and  in  some 
other  individuals,  as  Titus  and  Timothy,  and  the  angels  of  the  seven 
churches  of  Asia,  who  have  no  official  designation  given  them.  It  waa 
after  the  apostolic  age  that  the  name  '  bishop '  was  taken  from  the  second 
order  and  appropriated  to  the  first. — Bishop  Onderdonk's  Episcopacy, 
tested  by  Scripture. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  145 

is  here  made  to  lean  on  a  certain  nameless  grade,  whose 
successors  have  uncourteously  appropriated  to  themselves 
exclusively  an  official  title  which  by  divine  right  belonged 
to  the  presbyters.  The  issue  of  the  argument,  accordingly, 
turns  chiefly  upon  the  proposition  which  comes  next  under 
consideration. 

4.  There  was,  in  the  apostolical  churches,  no  ordinary 
class  of  ministers  superior  to  that  of  presbyters  or  bishops. 

We  deny  entirely  that  Timothy,  or  Titus,  or  any  other 
person,  or  class  of  persons  named  in  Scripture,  represents  a 
grade,  or  order  of  ministers  in  the  churches  planted  by  the 
apostles,  who  were  invested  with  prerogatives  superior  to 
those  of  presbyters  ;  and  whose  office  was  to  be  perpetuated 
in  the  church  of  Christ.  In  opposition  to  these  Episcopal 
pretensions,  we  remark  : 

1.  That  no  distinct  appellation  is  given  to  the  supposed' 
order,  and  no  class  of  religious  teachers  represents  them  in 
the  Scriptures. 

If  there  be  such  an  order,  it  is  surely  extraordinary  that 
it  should  be  left  without  a  name,  or  a  distinctive  appellation 
of  any  kind.  Here  is  a  high  grade,  possessed  of  exclusive 
ministerial  rights  and  powers,  from  whom  all  clerical  grace 
has  been  transmitted  by  Episcopal  succession,  age  after 
age,  down  to  the  present  time;  and  yet  distinguished  by  no 
appellation,  represented  by  no  single  class  or  order  of  men. 
The  inferior  grades,  presbyters  and  deacons,  are  specified 
with  great  distinctness,  but  the  highest  and  most  important 
of  all  has  no  definite  name,  no  distinct  and  single  repre- 
sentative. And  yet  your  bishop,  with  astonishing  credulity, 
runs  backward  his  spiritual  lineage  up,  I  had  almost  said, 
through  a  thousand  generations,  in  strange  uncertainty  all 
the  while,  to  whom  he  shall  at  last  attach  himself,  or  with 
whom  claim  kindred.  If  Peter  fails  him,  he  flies  to  Paul, 
to  James,  to  Timothy,  to  Titus,  to  the  angel  of  the  church,, 
to — he  knows  not  whom.  He  is,  however,  a  legitimate  de- 
13 


146  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

scendant  and  successor  of  some  apostolical  bishop.  He 
is  sure  of  that;  but  that  bishop — nobody  knows  who 
he  is,  or  what  his  office  may  have  been, —  stat  7iominis 
umbra. 

2.  We  deny  that  the  Scriptures  give  any  authority  for 
ascribing  to  either  of  the  apostles,  or  to  their  assistants  and 
fellow-laborers,  the  exercise  of  Episcopal  authority. 

The  fathers  do  indeed  concur  in  assigning  Episcopal 
sees  to  several  of  the  apostles,  and  to  their  helpers.  And 
modern  Episcopalians  refer  us  with  great  confidence  to 
James,  to  Timothy,  Titus,  and  to  the  angel  of  the  church 
in  the  epistles  of  the  apocalypse,  as  instances  of  primitive 
bishops.  Now  we  deny  that  either  of  these  exercised  the 
rights  and  prerogatives  of  an  Episcopal  bishop. 

{a)     James  was  not  bishop  of  Jerusalem. 

We  have  already  seen^^  with  what  care  the  apostles 
guarded  against  the  assumption  of  authority  over  the 
churches.  They  taught,  they  counselled,  they  administered, 
they  reproved,  indeed,  with  the  authority  of  ambassadors 
of  God  and  ministers  of  Christ.  But  they  assumed  not 
to  rule  and  to  govern  with  the  official  power  of  a  diocesan. 
The  evidence  of  this  position  is  already  before  the  reader, 
and  to  his  consideration  we  submit  it  without  further 
remark. 

But  James,  it  is  said,  resided  at  Jerusalem,  as  bishop  of 
that  church  and  diocese ;  and,  in  this  capacity,  offers  us  a 
scriptural  example  of  an  apostolical  bishop.  The  Episco- 
pal functions  of  this  bishop,  therefore,  require  a  particular 
consideration. 

In  the  days  of  Claudius  Csesar,  arose  a  dearth  through- 
out Judea,  so  distressing  that  a  charitable  collection  was 
taken  up  and  forwarded  by  the  hands  of  Barnabas  and 
Saul,  to  the  brethren  in  Judea,  residing  in  the  reputed 

26  Chapter  I. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  147 

diocese  of  this  bishop  of  Jerusalem.  To  whom  was  this 
charity  sent  ?  Not  to  the  bishop,  but  to  the  presbyters,  the 
appropriate  ofHcers  of  that  church,  Acts  11 :  30. 

The  delegation  from  Antioch  was  sent,  not  to  the  bishop, 
but  to  the  apostles  and  presbyters,  Acts  15  :  2.  This  dele- 
gation should  have  been  received,  it  would  seem,  by  the 
bishop,  as  the  official  organ  of  the  church.  But,  instead  of 
this,  they  are  hospitably  received  by  the  church,  and  the 
apostles,  and  the  presbyters.  Not  a  syllable  is  said  of  the 
bishop.  The  council  convene  to  consider  the  question  which 
was  submitted  for  their  decision.  Who  compose  this  coun- 
cil ?  The  apostles  and  presbyters,  again,  without  any  men- 
tion of  the  bishop.  After  the  discussion,  in  which  James 
bears  indeed  a  prominent  part  with  the  other  apostles,  who 
act  in  making  up  the  result  ?  The  apostles  and  presbyters. 
It  seemed  good  to  the  apostles  and  presbyters,  luith  all  the 
church.  Who  appear  in  the  salutation  of  the  letter  ad- 
dressed to  the  church  at  Antioch  ?  The  apostles,  the  pres- 
byters and  the  brethren.  Mention  is  again  made.  Acts  16 :  4, 
of  the  decrees  of  this  council.  Who  now  appear  as  the 
authors  of  these  decrees  ?  The  apostles  and  presbyters. 
Where  is  our  diocesan  all  this  time  ?  Plainly  he  has  no 
official  character  as  such.  A  bishop  over  this  community, 
just  now  living  together  in  the  simplicity  of  their  mutual 
love,  is  an  idle  fancy,  devoid  alike  of  reality,  of  influence, 
and  of  name.  Had  James  been  bishop  of  Jerusalem  at 
this  time,  would  he  not  have  acted  a  conspicuous  part  in 
all  these  concerns,  as  we  have  seen  that  the  presbyters  did  ? 
Would  not  his  high  office  have  given  him  a  place  vastly 
more  prominent  than  theirs  in  all  these  transactions; 
whereas  they,  with  the  apostles,  are  the  chief  actors,  as 
the  individuals  upon  whom  rests  the  government  of  the 
church  at  Jerusalem.^'!' 

James    appears    to   have    resided    chiefly   at   this   city 

27  Rothe,  Anfange;  Vol  I,  p.  267,  seq. 


148  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

for  good  and  sufficient  reasons,  without  remaining-  there 
as  the  prelatical  head  of  that  church  or  diocese.  The  holy 
city  was  the  seat  of  the  Christian  religion,  and  to  the  apostles, 
the  centre  of  their  operations.  It  was  the  church  to  which 
all  referred,  like  the  church  at  Antioch,  as  they  might  have 
occasion,  for  counsel,  instruction  and  support.  What  more 
natural  than  that  one  of  the  twelve  should  remain,  as  the 
representative  of  the  college  of  the  apostles,  to  give  direc- 
tion to  their  operations  and  their  councils  ?  And  for  this 
important  trust,  James,  one  of  the  kindred  of  our  Lord 
according  to  the  flesh,  from  his  youth  a  Nazarene,  intimately 
acquainted  with  all  the  national  peculiarities  and  prejudices 
of  the  Jews,  and  a  blameless  and  a  faithful  follower 
of  Christ,  was  eminently  qualified.  The  testimony  of 
Hegesippus  is  that  "  he  was  holy  from  his  mother's  womb," 
that  upon  account  of  his  most  eminent  righteousness  he 
was  styled  the  Just.  He  represents  the  Scribes  and  Phari- 
sees as  saying  to  him,  "  We  all  put  our  confidence  in  thee ; 
and  we,  and  all  the  people,  bear  thee  witness  that  thou  art 
just,  and  respectest  not  the  person  of  any  man."28  James 
the  just,  then,  remained  at  Jerusalem,  as  the  delegate  of 
the  college  of  the  apostles,  and  the  honored  counsellor  and 
adviser  of  the  churches,  but  with  no  pretensions  to  dioce- 
san or  prelatical  authority  over  them. 

As  a  Jew,  as  the  brother  of  our  Lord,  as  well  as  by  the 
amiable  characteristics  mentioned  above,  he  was  eminently 
qualified  to  act  as  mediator  between  the  opposite  parties  of 
Jew  and  Gentile  converts ;  and  to  counsel,  and  to  act  for 
the  peace  of  the  church.  But  in  all  this  he  acted,  not  as 
a  bishop,  but  as  an  apostle,  in  that  divine  character,  and  by 
that  authorit}^  which  he  possessed  as  an  apostle  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  which,  as  Neander  has  well  ob- 
served, could  be  delegated  to  none  other.-^ 

28  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  2,  c.  23. 

29  Introduction,  p.  19.     Also  Apost.  Kirch.,  2,  c.  1,  p.  14,  seq. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOrS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  149 

But  do  not  Clement  of  Alexandria,^^  Hegesippus,3i  the 
Apostolical  Constitutions,32E^se]3J[l2SJ33  Cyril  of  Jerusalem,34 
Epiphanius,35  Chrysostom,^^  Jerome,^^  Augiistine,^^  and 
many  others  of  later  date,  all  agree  that  James  was  bishop 
of  Jerusalem  ?  Grant  it  all.  These  all  characterize  him 
as  bishop  of  Jerusalem.  And  yet  not  satisfied  that  James 
was  bishop  of  this  parent  church  ?  No,  by  no  means. 
Their  declaration  only  relates  to  a  disputed  point  in  the 
history  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  upon  which  we,  per- 
haps, are  as  competent  to  decide  as  they.  With  the  same 
historical  data  in  view,  why  cannot  a  judgment  be  made 
up  upon  them  as  safely  in  the  nineteenth  century  as  in  the 
third  or  the  fifth  ?  With  what  propriety  these  ancient 
fathers  denominate  James  bishop  of  Jerusalem,  let  the 
reader  himself  judge  in  view  of  the  foregoing  considerations. 

But  Hegesippus  lived  in  the  second  century,  within  one 
hundred  years  of  the  apostolic  age,  and  must  be  an  unexcep- 
tionable witness.  What  then  is  his  testimony  ?  Simply 
that  he  took  charge  of  the  church  in  connection  loith  the 
apostles,  for  such  must  the  term  ^£i(x  imply,  if  it  means 
any  thing.  This  use  of  this  preposition,  however,  is  not 
common,  and  the  authenticity  of  the  passage  is  doubtful, 
diude/ETai,  de  —  tt^j^  ixxltjaluv  fteicc  TWi'  unoajolojy.  He  re- 
mained chiefly  at  Jerusalem,  the  centre  of  operation  for  all 
of  the  apostles,  and  had,  if  you  please,  the  immediate 
supervision  of  this  church  in  connection  with  the  other 
apostles.     Aside    from  the    Scriptures,  therefore,  nothing 

30  Euseb.,  EccL  Hist.,  2,  c.  1.  3'  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  2,  c.  23. 

32  Lib.  G,  Ep.  14,  p.  346. 

33Lib.2,c.  1.   2,c.  23.  3,  c.  5.   7,  c.  19.   Comment,  ad  Isac.  17  :  5,  Tom. 
2,  p.  422.    Montfaucon,  Collec,  T\ov.  Pat.  et  Scrip.  Graec,  ed.,  Paris,  170G. 

34  Catech.,  4,  Ep.  28,  p.  65,  ed.  Tontee. 

35  Haev.,  78.    Antidicomarianitar,  ^  5,  p.  1039. 

36  Horn.  38,  in  Ep.  ad  Corinth,  Tom.  10,  p.  355. 

37  Catal.  Script.  Eccl.,  s.  v.  Jacob,  frater  Domini,  Tom.  l,p.  170.     Com- 
ment, in  Ep.  ad  Gal.  1 :  19.    Tom.  9,  p.  123. 

38  Contra  literas  Petiliani,  L.  2,  c.  51,  §  118,  Tom.  9,  p.  172. 

13# 


150  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

appears  from  this  writer  to  show  that  he  exercised  the  in- 
dependent authority  of  bishop  over  the  church.  After  the 
rise  of  the  hierarchy,  the  Episcopal  fathers  that  have  been 
mentioned  may  have  interpreted  the  testimony  of  this  au- 
thor into  a  declaration  of  the  Episcopal  office  of  James. 
If  so,  we  are  at  liberty  to  challenge  the  authority  of  these 
fathers  on  the  point  under  consideration.  Like  them  we 
have  the  historical  record  before  us,  and  the  means  of 
forming  an  independent  opinion.39 

Indeed,  antiquity  itself,  in  the  language  of  Milton,  "  hath 
turned  over  the  controversy  to  that  sovereign  book  which 
we  had  fondly  straggled  from."  After  refuting  other  tra- 
ditions, he  adds,  "as  little  can  your  advantage  be  from 
Hegesippus,  an  historian,  of  the  same  time,  not  extant,  but 
cited  by  Eusebius.  His  words  are,  '  that  in  every  city  all 
things  so  stood  in  his  time  as  the  law  and  the  prophets,  and 
our  Lord  did  preach.'  If  they  stood  so,  then  stood  not 
bishops  above  presbyters.  For  what  our  Lord  and  his 
disciples  taught,  God  be  thanked,  we  have  no  need  to  go 
learn  of  him."^o 

The  churches,  as  we  have  already  seen,  w^ere  at  this 
time  entirely  independent.  They  had  no  confederate  re- 
lations, one  toward  another.  They  were,  simply,  any 
number  of  believers  associated  together  by  common  con- 
sent, for  the  enjoyment  of  the  word  and  ordinances  of  their 
common  Lord.  Besides  their  union  of  faith  and  fellow- 
ship of  spirit,  they  had  one  bond  of  union  in  the  instruc- 
tion, care  and  oversight  which  the  apostles  exercised  in 
common  over  all  the  churches.  This  general  supervision 
the  apostles  exercised  conjointly,  and  thus  formed  a  com- 
mon bond  of  connection  between  the  different  fraternities ; 
going  themselves,  from  place  to  place,  confirming  the 
churches,  and  reporting  to  each  the  faith  and  piety  of  such 

39  Rothe,  Anfange  der  Christ.  Kirch.,  1,  263—272. 

40  Prose  Works,  Vol.  I,  p.  86. 


EQUALITY    OF    BlSIIOrS    AND    TRESBYTERS.  151 

as  they  had  visited.  What  care  the  apostle  Paul  took  to 
encourage  this  fellowship  of  the  churches  is  gratefully 
manifested  in  the  salutations  which  he  sends  in  their  be- 
half. All  the  churches  of  Christ  salute  you,  Eom.  16  :  16. 
The  churches  of  Asia  salute  you.  All  the  brethren  greet 
you,  1  Cor.  16 :   19,  20. 

Under  these  circumstances,  the  churches  severally  re- 
ferred to  the  apostles,  for  instruction,  for  counsel,  and  for 
assistance,  as  they  might  have  occasion.  This  oversight 
the  apostles  carefully  exercised ;  caring  for  all,  and  watch- 
ing for  all,  as  they  had  opportunity,  that  thus  they  might, 
as  far  as  possible,  supply  the  place  of  iheir  Lord,  and  fulfil 
the  ministry  which  they  had  received  from  him.  In  the 
distribution  of  their  labors,  by  mutual  consent,  they  occu- 
pied, to  a  great  extent,  their  separate  fields.  Some  going 
to  the  heathen,  and  others  to  the  circumcision,  Gal.  2:  7 — 9. 
But  none  had  any  settled  cure,  or  any  prescribed  field  of 
labor,  bearing  the  remotest  analogy  to  a  modern  diocese. 
Paul  was  greatly  oppressed  by  the  care  of  all  the  churches^ 
which  came  daily  upon  him.  Who  is  weak  and  I  am  not 
w^eak  ?  Who  is  offended  and  I  burn  not  ?  2  Cor.  11 :  29. 
So  that  while  each  may  have  been  the  apostle  of  particular 
churches,  each  and  every  one  exercised  a  common  over- 
sight and  jurisdiction  over  all,  by  whomsoever  they  may 
have  been  originally  organized.  Nor  was  this  jurisdiction 
of  the  several  apostles  exercised  by  them  on  their  own 
individual  responsibility,  but  in  common  rather  as  fellow- 
apostles  and  co-workers,  for  the  rearing  up  of  the  church 
of  Christ,  and  the  extension  of  his  kingdom.  In  a  word, 
the  government  of  the  churches  was  vested  in  the  apostles, 
not  individually,  but  collectively;  and  each  exercised  his 
authority  as  a  joint  member  of  the  apostolical  body,  who 
were  ordained  and  endowed  with  grace  to  be  witnesses  of 
the  gospel  of  our  Lord  in  every  place,  "  for  the  perfecting 
of  the  saints,  for  the  work  of  the  ministry,  for  the  edifica- 


1^  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

tion  of  the  body  of  Christ."  Such  are  the  views  of 
Rothe,^!  one  of  the  latest  writers  on  this  subject,  who  has 
set  forth  his  sentiments  with  great  clearness,  and  supported 
them  with  unequalled  learning  and  ability.  Such  also  are 
the  sentiments  of  Chrysostom,  an  ancient  and  learned 
bishop.  "  The  apostles  were  constituted  of  God  rulers, 
not  over  a  separate  nation  or  city,  but  all  were  entrusted 
with  the  world.  "42 

{b)     Timothy  at  Ephesus  was  not  a  bishop. 

Timothy  w^as  one  of  a  class  of  religious  teachers  who 
acted  as  the  assistants  and  fellow-laborers  of  the  apostle. 
Their  assistance  was  employed  as  a  needful  expedient  to 
enable  the  apostles  to  exercise  their  supervision  over  the 
infant  churches  which  sprang  up  in  the  different  and  distant 
countries  through  which  Christianity  was  propagated  by 
them.  Over  churches  widely  separated,  the  apostles  could 
personally  exercise  but  little  supervision.  Some  of  them, 
as  the  apostle  Peter,  and  especially  the  great  apostle  of  the 
Gentiles,  were  instrumental  in  planting  many  churches  in 
distant  countries.  He  saw  the  necessity  of  employing 
suitable  and  competent  men,  who,  invested  with  his 
authority,  and  in  his  name,  might  supply  his  lack  of 
service  to  those  churches  which  lay  beyond  the  range  of 
his  immediate  inspection.  They  were  neither  permanent 
officers  in  the  church,  nor  restricted  to  any  specific  circuit, 
but  temporary  residents,  to  assist  in  setting  in  order  the 
churches,  and  giving  needful  instruction,  as  the  occasion 
might  require,  and  then  to  pass  away  to  some  other 
station,  wherever  their  services  might  be  required. 

Such  assistants  and  delegates  of  the  apostles  are  of 
frequent  occurrence  in  the  Scriptures.     And  this  view  of 

41  Anfange,  Christ.  Kirch.,  pp.  297—310. 

*^  'Eiali^  -vno  deou  /eiQoiopj/devTsg  anouiokoi  uq^ovxeg^  ovx 
Wvi]  xal  TidXeig  diixcpooovg  la'A^avovTBg^  Ctlla  TKxvxeg  xoivrf 
rrjv  6iy.ovi.iEvrjV  luniuiivdEVTug — Cited  by  Campbell,  Lectures, p.  77. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    TKESBYTERS.  153 

their  office  affords,  at  once,  a  natural  and  easy  explanation 
of  the  peculiar  and  somewhat  anomalous  rank  which  they 
seem  to  hold.  Bishops  they  certainly  were  not,  in  the 
Episcopal  sense  of  that  term.^^  ]\^either  were  they  merely 
presbyters ;  for,  though  in  many  things  their  office  was 
analogous  to  that  of  presbyters,  in  other  respects  it  was 
widely  different.  Such  was  Timothy,  whom  Paul  styles 
his  fellow-laborer,  o-uj-foyo;.  Rom.  16:  21.  1  Thess.  3:  2. 
In  the  salutations  of  his  epistles,  also,  he  often  couples  the 
name  of  Timothy  with  his  own.  Phil.  1:1.  1  Thess.  1 :  1. 
2  Thess.  1:  1,  6cc.  Accordingly,  Timothy  appears  as  the 
travelling  companion  of  the  apostle. 

He  seems,  indeed,  at  different  times,  to  have  had  the 
superintendence  of  several  churches  in  various  places. 
Comp.  1  Cor.  4:  17,  1  Tim.  1:  3,  and  1  Thess.  3:  2,  from 
which  it  appears  that  he  was  sent  to  Corinth,  to  Ephesus, 
and  to  Thessalonica,  as  a  fellow-laborer  and  assistant  of  the 
apostle.  From  what  is  said  of  his  influence  at  Corinth,  it 
would  seem  that  he  might  with  almost  equal  propriety  be 
styled  the  bishop  of  that  city  as  of  Ephesus.  In  the  first 
epistle,  he  is  reputed  to  have  been  sent  to  them,  as  the 
representative  of  the  apostle,  to  bring  them  into  remem- 
brance of  his  w^ays  and  doctrines;  and,  in  the  second, 
he  unites  with  Paul  as  his  brother  in  the  salutation 
of  that  church.  The  whole  history  of  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles,  and  indeed  the  language  of  the  epistles  proves 
that,  like  the  other  of  St.  Paul's  fellow-travellers,  Timothy 
had  no  settled  abode,  no  fixed  station  ;  but  assisted  him,  as 
an  evangelist,  in  setting  the  churches  in  order,  and  in  the 
accomplishment  of  any  special  object  which  the  apostle 
had  in  view,  and  to  which  he  could  not  personally  attend. 
The  apostle,  often  coupling  the  name  of  Timothy  with  his 
own,  presents  him  to  us  as  his  travelling  companion  and 

43  Bishop  Onderdonk  only  claims  this  distinction  for  Timothy,  and  many 
of  that  communion  give  up  this  point. 


154  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

assistant.  This  itinerating  life  of  Timothy  sufficiently 
proves  that  he  was  not  the  bishop  of  Ephesus.  When 
both  the  epistles  to  the  Thessalonians  were  written, 
A.  D.  62,  Timothy  was  with  Paul  at  Corinth,  having 
lately  returned  from  Thessalonica,  where  he  had  spent 
some  time  in  ministering  to  that  church. 

When  Paul  wrote  the  first  epistle  to  the  Corinthians, 
A.  D.  57,  from  Ephesus,  Timothy  was  absent  again,  on  a 
mission  to  Macedonia  and  Achaia,  from  whence  he  was 
expected  soon  to  be  there.  1  Cor.  16:  10.  Titus  also 
goes  about  this  time  on  a  mission  to  Corinth. 

The  year  following,  when  Paul  wrote  his  second  epistle 
from  Macedonia,  Timothy  was  with  him  there,  and  Titus, 
whom  Paul  had  met  in  Macedonia,  was  again  one  of  the 
messengers  by  whom  the  letter  was  forwarded  to  that 
church. 

Some  months  later,  A.  D.  58,  when  he  WTOte  his  epistle 
to  the  Romans  from  Corinth,  Timothy  was  with  him  there. 

The  epistle  to  the  Ephesians  was  written  from  Rome, 
A.  D.  61,  subsequent  to  the  time  when  Timothy  is  alleged 
to  have  been  made  bishop  of  Ephesus;  yet  he  is  not 
named  in  it,  nor  is  there  any  allusion  in  it  to  any  head 
of  the  church  there,  but  only  to  "  the  saints  and  faithful 
brethren."  Indeed,  it  is  certain,  from  the  epistles  to  the 
Colossians  and  to  Philemon,  written  about  the  same  time 
from  Rome,  that  Timothy  was,  at  this  time,  in  that  city; 
so  that  he  could  scarcely  have  been  in  his  supposed  diocese 
at  all. 

"  The  expression  in  1  Tim.  1 :  3,  'As  I  besought  thee  to 
abide  still  at  Ephesus  when  I  went  into  Macedonia,'  seems 
to  mark  but  a  temporary  purpose,  and  to  bear  little  simili- 
tude to  a  settled  appointment  and  establishment  of  him  as 
head  of  the  church  there,  i.  e.,  bishop,  in  the  modern  accept- 
ation of  the  term,  resembling  rather  his  previous  mission 
to  Thessalonica,  referred  to  in  the  epistle  to  the  Thessalo- 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  155 

nians  (3:  2);  and  this  is  confirmed  by  the  undoubted  fact, 
that  when  the  second  epislle  to  him  was  written,  not  only 
was  Timothy  not  in  his  supposed  diocese  at  Ephesus,  but 
the  apostle  tells  him  that  he  had  sent  Tychicus  there,  who 
is  spoken  of  by  the  apostle  as  being  in  like  manner  a 
fellow-servant,  beloved  brother,  and  fellow-minister  of  the 
Lord  (Ephes.  6:  21),  as  Timothy  himself  was.  This  we 
know  to  have  been  shortly  before  the  death  of  the  apostle. "^^ 
The  absurdity  of  supposing  that  this  request  was  made 
to  Timothy  as  bishop,  is  forcibly  presented  by  Daille. 
"Why  beseech  a  bishop  to  remain  in  his  diocese?  Is  it 
not  to  beseech  a  man  to  stay  in  a  place  to  which  he  is 
bound  ?  I  should  not  think  it  strange  to  beseech  him  to 
leave  it,  if  his  services  were  needed  elsewhere.  But  to 
beseech  him  to  abide  in  a  place  where  his  charge  obliges 
him  to  be,  and  which  he  cannot  forsake  without  offending 
God  and  neglecting  his  duty,  is,  to  say  the  truth,  not  a  very 
civil  entreaty;  as  it  plainly  pre-supposes  that  he  has  not 
his  duty  much  at  heart,  seeing  one  is  under  the  necessity 
of  beseeching  him  to  do  it."''^ 

By  the  imposition  of  hands  he  was  endowed  with  pecu- 
liar gifts,  that  qualified  him  to  serve  the  churches  as  a 
fellow-laborer  with  the  apostle,  who  accordingly  charges 
him  not  to  neglect  this  gift.'*^ 

But  what  need  of  many  words  on  this  subject?  The 
apostle,  just  before  his  death,  and  long  after  he  is  supposed 
to  have  settled  Timothy  as  bishop  at  Ephesus,  gives  him 
his  true  designation, — an  evangelist,  "  Do  the  work,"  not 
of  bishop,  but  "  of  an  evangelist."    The  work  which  he  was 

42  Bowdler's  Letters  on  Apost.  Succession,  pp.  25,  26. 

43  Daille,  ci-dessus,  p.  23.     Cited  in  Mason's  Works,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  197. 

44  Comp,  Neander,  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  c.  10.  Rothe,  Anfange,  Vol.  I,  pp. 
160, 161,  and  2685  also,  J.  H.  Bohmer,  Diss.  Jur.  Eccl.  Antiq.,  p.  424,  seq., 
where  is  given  an  able  discussion  of  the  points  under  consideration,  in 
relation  to  Timothy,  Titus,  and  the  angel  of  the  churches.  Barnes's  Apost. 
Church;  pp.  99—107;  and  Smyth's  Presbytery  and  Prelacy,  chap.  12,  ^  3. 


156  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

exhorted  to  do  was  simply  that  of  a  "  person  Avho,  being 
attached  to  no  particular  church,  was  sent  by  the  apostle 
as  was  necessary,  either  for  the  purpose  of  founding  new 
churches,  or  of  confirming  those  which  were  already  estab- 
lished." 45 

(c)     Titus  was  not  bishop  of  Crete. 

Like  Timothy,  Titus  was  an  evangelist.  He  received 
similar  instructions  and  performed  similar  labors.  Like 
Timothy,  he  also  travelled  too  much  for  a  stationary  pre- 
late. From  Syria  we  trace  him  to  Jerusalem ;  thence  to 
Corinth ;  thence  to  Macedonia ;  back  again  to  Corinth ; 
thence  to  Crete ;  thence  to  Dalmatia ;  and  whether  he  ever 
returned  to  Crete  is  wholly  uncertain.  He  was  left  at 
Crete,  therefore,  not  as  bishop  of  that  diocese,  but  as  an 
assistant  of  the  apostle,  to  establish  the  churches,  and  to 
continue  the  work  which  the  apostle  had  begun.  "After 
Paul  had  laid  the  foundation  of  the  Christian  church  in 
Crete,"  says  Neander,  "  he  left  Titus  behind,  to  complete 
the  organization  of  the  churches,  to  confirm  the  new  con- 
verts in  purity  of  doctrine,  and  to  counterwork  the  influence 
of  the  false  teachers."  46 

From  all  this  there  appears  to  be  no  scriptural  foundation 
for  considering  either  Timothy,  established  as  bishop  of 
Ephesus,  or  Titus,  of  Crete.  Dr.  Whitby,  himself  a  zealous 
advocate  of  Episcopacy,  assures  us  that  he  could  find 
nothing  in  any  writer  of  the  first  three  centtiries  concerning 
the  Episcopate  of  Timothy  and  Titus ;  nor  any  intimation 
that  they  lore  that  name.  "  Certain  it  is,"  says  Campbell, 
also,  "  that  in  the  first  three  centuries,  neither  Timothy  nor 
Titus  is  styled  bishop  by  any  writer."  He  journeyed  much 
with  Paul,  and  was  left  in  Crete,  like  Timothy  at  Ephesus, 
to  render,  in  behalf  of  the  apostles,  a  similar  service  to  the 
churches  on  that  island. 

45  Beausobre,  quoted  by  Mant  and  d'Ogly,  on  Acts  21  :  8. 
<6  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  p.  405. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  157 

Of  the  same  general  character,  also,  was  Silvanus, 
1  Thess.  1:  1.  2  Thess.  1:  1.  Comp.  1  Pet.  5:  12;  and 
Mark,  Col.  4:  10.  1  Pet.  5:  13;  and  Clemens,  Phil.  4:  3, 
and  several  others.  Silas  is  first  the  travelling  companion 
of  Paul  and  Barnabas  in  Asia  Minor ;  then  of  Paul,  in  his 
second  missionary  tour  through  Asia  Minor,  Macedonia, 
and  Achaia ;  and,  at  a  later  period,  the  companion  of  Peter 
in  the  Parthian  empire.  Mark,  also,  was  first  the  com- 
panion of  Paul  and  Barnabas ;  then,  after  their  separation,  of 
Barnabas  in  Cyprus;  and  afterwards  of  Peter  in  the  Parthian, 
empire ;  and  from  thence  he  accompanied  him  to  Rome. 

No  one  of  the  apostles,  therefore,  nor  Timothy,  nor 
Titus,  nor  any  of  the  evangelists,  acted  in  the  capacity  of 
bishop  of  any  church  or  diocese.  In  neither  has  this 
higher  grade  any  representation ;  nor  has  the  prelatical 
doctrine  of  Episcopal  supremacy  and  apostolical  succession, 
the  least  foundation  in  Scripture.'*^ 

{d)  The  angel  of  the  church  in  the  apocalyptic  epistles 
was-  not  a  bishop. 

On  this  subject,  we  shall  present  the  reader  with  the 
exposition  of  several  distinguished  scholars,  and  submit  it 
to  him,  whether  this  phraseology  supports  the  prelatical 
claims  of  Episcopacy.  The  views  of  Neander  are  briefly 
given  in  his  Introduction.^^ 

By  the  kindness  of  Prof.  Stuart,  we  here  offer  the 
following  exposition  from  his  unpublished  commentary  on 
Revelation : 

"  The  seven  angels  have  given  occasion  to  much  specu* 
lation  and  diversity  of  opinion.  Are  they  teachers,  bishops^ 
overseers  ?  or  is  some  other  office  designated  by  the  word 
ayyelog^  angel,  here  ? 

"  1.  Old  Testament  usage ;  viz.,  the  later  Hebrew  employ  s 
the  word'^x^5=ayyfAoc,  to  designate  a  prophet.  Hag.  1 :  13,. 
also  a  priest.     Mai.  2 :  7,  and  Ecc.  5:  Q.     As  priests,  in 

47  Comp.  Rothe,  Anfange,  1,  p.  305,  seq.  48  Page  21. 

14 


158  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  appropriate  sense  of  the  word,  did  not  exist  in  the 
Christian  churches  (for  they  had  no  Mosaic  ritual  of  sacri- 
fices and  oblations),  so  we  must  compare  ayyeXo;  here  with 
^xSn,  prophet,  in  Hag.  1:  13.  ngocprirai,  prophets,  there 
were  in  the  Christian  church.  See  1  Cor.  12 :  28.  Acts 
13  :  1.  1  Cor.  14 :  29,  32,  37.  Eph.  2  :  20.  3  :  5.  4 :  11. 
Taken  in  this  sense,  the  word  designates  here  the  leading 
teacher  in  the  Asiatic  churches.  The  nature  of  the  case 
would  seem  to  indicate  a  leader  here,  else  why  should  he 
be  especially  addressed  as  the  representative  of  the  whole 
body  in  each  of  the  Christian  churches  ?     But, 

"2.  Another  exposition  has  been  given.  Vitringa^^  has 
compared  the  cHyyelog  of  the  apocalypse  with  the  >13V  f' 7^ 
of  the  Jewish  synagogues,  which  means  legatus  ecclesiae 
[the  representative  or  delegate  of  the  church]^  and  compares 
well  with  dyyelog  ey.zih^Giag  \angel  of  the  church'],  as  to  the 
form  of  the  phrase.  The  office  of  the  individual  thus 
named  was  to  superintend  and  conduct  the  worship  of  the 
synagogue;  i.  e.,  he  recited  prayers,  and  read  the  Scrip- 
tures, or  invited  others  to  perform  these  duties ;  he  called 
on  the  priests  to  pronounce  the  final  benediction,  in  case  he 
himself  was  not  a  priest ;  he  proclaimed  the  sacred  feasts, 
and,  in  a  word,  he  superintended  the  whole  concerns  of 
religious  worship,  and  evidently  took  the  lead  in  them 
himself.  He  was  a  nqoeuTibg,  or  an  ^nlaxonog  [a  superin- 
tendent or  overseer],  and  also  a  didaay.alog,  teacher,  in  a 
greater  or  less  degree.  Comp.  John  3 :  10.  The  best 
account  of  his  office  is  in  Schoettgen,  Horae  Heb.,  p.  1089, 
seq.,  who  has  pointed  out  some  errors  and  deficiencies  of 
Vitringa.  The  nature  of  the  case  shows  that  the  superior 
officer  is,  in  this  instance,  and  should  be,  addressed.  He  is 
probably  called  the  angel  of  the  church,  in  conformity  to 

49  De  Vet.  Synagoga.,  p.  910,  seq.  As  an  interpretation  of  the  Hebrew- 
phrase,  niDY  n'W  the  English  reader  may  read,  as  often  as  it  occurs, 
the  ruler  of  the  synagogue. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  159 

the  Hebrew  Chaldee  '^•ISV  D'*?^  (possibly  in  reference  to 
Hag.  1  :  13,  or  Mai.  2  :  7),  and  may  be  called  legahts 
ecclesiae,  because  he  is  delegatus  ah  ecclesia  [delegated  by 
the  church],  in  order  that  he  may  render  their  public 
devotions  to  God,  and  superintend  their  social  worship. 
Exactly  the  limits  of  the  office  and  its  specific  duties 
neither  the  word,  a}'7£Ao;,  explains,  nor  does  the  context 
give  us  any  particular  information." 

The  learned  Origen  affirms,  that  the  angels  of  the 
churches  were  the  ngoeoTwreg,  the  presiding  presbyters, 
the  same  of  whom  Justin,  Tertullian,  and  Clemens  Alex- 
andrinus  speak,  in  the  extracts  which  are  given  below,  in 
their  order.^^ 

The  exposition  given  below  is  from  the  learned  Dr. 
Delitzsh,  of  Leipsic,  the  associate  of  Dr.  Fii'rst,  in  preparing 
his  Hebrew  Concordance.  The  writer  himself  is  a  man  of 
profound  erudition  in  all  that  relates  to  Hebrew  and  Rab- 
binical literature,  who,  by  our  particular  desire,  furnished 
the  article  for  us  in  a  late  visit  to  that  city. 

"  The  (i-yyelov  t^?  ixy.h^aiag,  aiigels  of  the  churches,  are 
the  bishops ;  or,  what  in  my  opinion  is  the  same  in  the 
apostolical  churches,  the  presbyters  of  the  churches.  The 
expression,  like  many  others  in  the  New  Testament,  is 
derived  from  the  synagogue,  which  may  be  regarded  as 
the  parent  source  of  the  Christian  church,  having  remained 
essentially  unchanged  for  a  long  time  after  the  overthrow 
of  the  temple  service.  The  office  of  the  nni*  tl'V^  corre- 
sponds entirely  with  that  of  bishop  or  presbyter  of  the 
apostolical  churches. 

"1.  The  "ilDi'  n^Siy  bears  this  name  as  the  delegatus 
ecclesiae,  the  delegate  of  the  church,  who  was  elected  by 
them  to  exercise  and  enjoy  the  privileges  and  prerogatives 
of  a  presiding  officer  in  their  assemblies.     It  was  his  duty 

*°  ngoEcnihTag  jivag  twv  ey.y.hjaiZii'  ayyilovg  liysaduc  Ttagu 
TO)  lojupviq  Ip  tt]  knoxaiulvipei. — De  Orat.,  §  34. 


160  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

to  pray  in  the  name  of  the  assembly,  to  lead  in  the  reading 
of  the  Scriptures,  to  blow  the  trumpet,  the  ^2W  on  the 
opening  of  a  new  year ;  and,  in  the  absence  of  those  who 
belonged  to  the  priesthood,  the  DOriD,  to  pronounce  the 
Aaronitic  benediction.  So  fer  as  the  performance  of  this 
rite  is  concerned,  the  priests  themselves  are  the  I-IS^  'n-nt^. 
The  original  passages  are  given  by  Schoettgen.^i  So  high 
and  important  was  the  office  of  this  11 DV  H'Viy,  and  so 
nearly  did  it  correspond  with  that  of  bishop  or  presbyter, 
that  the  name  of  the  former  might  be  applied  to  the  latter. 

"  The  signification  of  the  term  may  also  be  learned  from 
the  Aramaean  term,  the  ^^'^'^il-  This  officer  of  the  syna- 
gogue, the  ")l32f  n^b^y,  was  regarded  as  bringing  before 
God  the  prayers  of  the  people,  which  were  considered  as 
their  spiritual  offering.  It  appears  from  the  Jerusalem 
Talmud,  that  when  one  was  invited  to  ascend  the  pulpit  to 
offer  public  prayers,  the  language  of  the  invitation  was, 
not  '  Come  and  pray,'  but  '  Come  hither,  and  present  our 
ofixjring,'  •l^.^J'^j^  ^W.-^^ 

"The  office  of  the  nnv  n'Sty  did  not,  indeed,  include  the 
duty  of  a  public  teacher ;  for  the  office  of  public  preaching 
was  not  established  as  a  permanent  institution,  but  had  its 
origin  within  the  period  of  the  Christian  dispensation. 

"I  have  thus  shown  that  the  appellation,  angel  of  the 
churchy  was  used  to  designate  the  presiding  officer  of  the 
Christian  church,  with  particular  reference  to  the  y\yt  H'Sty 
of  the  synagogue.  Still,  as  a  name  of  an  office,  the  angel 
of  the  church  may  have  a  meaning  somewhat  higher. 
Such  a  meaning  it  may  have,  with  reference,  retrospect- 
ively, to  the  mrr  IxSn  of  the  Old  Testament.^^  go  that 
the  angel  of  the  church  may,  at  the  same  time,  denote  the 

51  Horae  Hebraicae  et  Talmudicae  ad  Apoc,  1,  p.  1089,  seq. 

52  Berachot,  c.  4,  f.  20G.  Comp.  Zunz,  Die  gottesdienstlichen  VortrS-ge 
der  Juden, 

53  Comp.  Malachi  2  i  7,  and  Haggai  1 ;  13. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOrS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  161 

bishop  or  presbyter  chosen  by  this  Christian  community,  to 
be  the  messenger,  or  servant,  both  of  God  and  of  the 
church.  This  call  of  the  church  is  itself  a  vocatio  divina, 
a  divine  calling;  and,  according  to  the  New  Testament 
view  of  the  subject,  unites  the  idea  of  both  offices  in  the 
same  person." 

Bengel,  also,  the  most  learned  expositor  of  the  book  of 
Eevelation,  is  of  opinion,  that  the  angel  of  the  church 
corresponds  to  the  *ii3i'  rrSlV  of  the  synagogue.  "  The 
Hebrews  had,  in  their  synagogue,  a  -|1DV  n'Sty,  d  depiitatum 
ecclesiae,  who,  in  reading,  in  prayer,  &c.,  led  the  congre- 
gation ;  and  such  a  leader,  also,  had  each  of  the  seven 
churches  of  the  Apocalypse."  ^^ 

The  result  is,  that  the  angel  of  the  churches,  whatever 
view  we  take  of  the  origin  of  the  term,  was  not  the  repre- 
sentative of  an  order  or  grade  superior  to  presbyters,  but 
himself  merely  a  presbyter ;  or,  if  you  please, — a  bishop, 
provided  you  mean  by  it  simply  what  the  Scriptures 
always  mean, — a  pastor  of  a  church,  the  ordinary  and  only 
minister,  divinely  constituted  to  be  the  shepherd  and  bishop 
of  their  souls. 

II.  It  remains  to  consider  the  historical  argument  for  the 
original  equality  and  identity  of  bishops  and  presbyters. 

The  doctrine  of  the  original  equality  and  identity  of 
bishops  and  presbyters  was  fully  recognized  in  the  early 
church,  and  continued  to  be  acknowledged,  even  after  the 
establishment  of  the  hierarchy,  down  to  the  time  of  the 
Reformation.  The  historical  argument  comprised  in  this 
proposition  may  be  resolved  into  several  particulars,  each 
of  which  serves  to  show  that  both  the  early  fathers  and 
later  historians  regarded  presbyters  and  bishops  as  belong- 

54  Erklarung  Offenbarung,  p.  216.  For  a  further  illustration  of  the  opin- 
ions of  the  learned,  the  reader  is  referred  to  Campbell's  Lectures  on  Eccl. 
Hist.,  pp.  82—88.    Whately,  Kingdom  of  Christ,  pp.  246—250. 

14* 


162  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ing  to  the  same  grade  or  order  of  the  clergy,  and  equal  in 
their  rights  and  privileges. 

1.  Presbyters  are  designated  by  names  and  titles  similar 
to  those  of  bishops. 

2.  Presbyters,  like  bishops,  are  carefully  distinguished 
from  the  deacons,  the  second  order  of  the  clergy,  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  show  that  they  are  indiscriminately  and 
equally  the  representatives  of  the  first  order. 

8.  Presbyters  were  understood  to  possess  the  right  to 
ordain;  and,  generally,  to  perform  the  functions  of  the 
Episcopal  office. 

4.  Bishops,  themselves,  in  their  ministerial  character, 
exercised  only  the  jurisdiction,  and  performed  merely  the 
offices,  of  presbyters  in  the  primitive  churches. 

5.  The  original  equality  of  bishops  and  presbyters  con- 
tinued to  be  acknowledged,  from  the  rise  of  the  Episcopal 
hierarchy  down  to  the  time  of  the  Eeformation. 

1.  Presbyters  are  designated  in  the  writings  of  the  early 
fathers  by  names  and  titles  similar  to  those  of  bishops. 

When  from  the  Scriptures  we  turn  to  the  writings  of 
these  fathers,  it  is  observable  that  they  speak  sometimes 
of  bishops  and  sometimes  of  presbyters  as  the  presiding 
officers  of  the  church,  and  then  again  of  both  indiscrimi- 
nately, as  being  one  and  the  same  in  rank.  To  both 
they  ascribe  the  same  or  similar  names  and  titles,  such 
as  seniors,  elders,  chairmen,  moderators,  presidents,  &c., 
all  indicating  a  similarity  and  identity  of  office,  and  an 
equality  of  rank.  Even  when  the  first  place  is  assigned 
to  the  bishop,  he  is  only  chief  among  equals,  just  as  in  a 
modern  presbytery  or  association,  one  is  promoted  to  the 
office  of  moderator,  to  which  all  are  alike  eligible.^^ 

55  We  have  brought  together  in  parallel  columns  some  of  the  names 
and  titles  which  are  ascribed  to  bishops  and  presbyters  severally.    The 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOrS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  163 

2.  Presbyters,  like  bishops,  are  carefully  distin^ished 
from  the  deacons,  the  second  order  of  the  clergy,  in  such 
a  manner  as  to  show  that  they  are  indiscriminately  and 
equally  the  representatives  of  the  first  order. 

Several  of  the  earliest  fathers  distinctly  recognize  but 
two  orders  of  the  priesthood.  They  of  the  first  order  are 
sometimes  denominated  presbyters,  sometimes  bishops,  and 
then  again  bishops  and  presbyters  indiscriminately.  It  is 
worthy  of  particular  notice,  that  while  bishops  and  presby- 

intelligent  reader  will  readily  perceive  the  similarity  of  the  titles  given  to 
both,  and  the  identity  of  their  significations. 

TITLES    OF    BISHOPS.  TITLES    OF    PRESBYTERS. 

'EnlaxOTTOij       TXQea^vieQOi,  '^Eniay.onoi,^   nQsa^vTsgot,,^ 

Ttodsdgoi,  ngotax&f.isvoi,  scpogov     ngoedgoi,'^  ngoefTTixneg.'^  ngog- 
dg/ovTeg  EKy.lt]Oi(av,ngoEaiib-     tutul.^ 
teg. 

Praesides,  praepositi3   praesiden-         Praepositi,  antistes,  majores  natu, 
tes,    superattendentes,    superinten-     senioreS;Senioresplebis,sacerdotes, 
dentes,  pastores,  patres  ecclesiae,      «fec. 
vicarii,  praesules,  antistes,  antistcs 
sacrorum,  seniores,  «fcc. 

These  and  several  other  titles  are  given  in  our  Antiquities,  pp.  70,  94. 
Riddle,  Christ.  Antiq.,  pp.  IGl,  229.  Baumgarten,  Erlauterungen,  pp.  75, 
94.     Rheinwald,  pp.  30,  45. 

Obviously  these  titles  severally  are  synonymous,  and  are  applied  indis- 
criminately to  both  bishops  and  presbyters,  to  denote  one  and  the  same 
office.  Riddle,  Christ.  Antiq.,  p.  230.  Blondell  very  justly  remarks,  that 
''  the  use  of  such  terms  creates  no  difficulty,  and  for  the  reason  that,  even 
after  a  distinction  was  made  between  bishops  and  presbyters  in  the  second 
century  by  the  decision  of  the  churches,  both  continued  to  be  distinguished 
indiscriminately  by  the  same  appellation." — Apologia  pro  Hleron,  p.  92. 

Riddle  also  allows  ''that  the  terms,  Inlaaonog  and  ngBa^vTsgog, 
in  the  New  Testament  are  synonymous,  and  denote  one  and  the  same 
office  5"  and  cites  several  passages,  to  some  of  which  reference  is  made 
above. 

1  Chrysost.,  Horn.  1,  in  Phil.  1,  p.  8.  Horn.  2,  in  1  Tim.  3.  Theodoret,  in  Phil. 
1:1.    2  :  25.    Jerome,  ad  Tit.  1,  and  Ep.  S3,  85. 

2  Greg.  Naz.,  Oral.  1.     Basil,  Reg.  Morali,  71. 

3  Synesius  Ep.,  12. 

4  Greg.  Naz.,  Oral.  1.    Basil,  M.  Regula  Morali. 

^  Chrysost.,  Hem.  11,  in  1  Tim.  4.    Comp.  Rom.  12 :  8. 


164  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ters  are  confounded  one  with  another,  they  are  uniformly- 
distinguished  from  the  deacons,  the  second  order  of  the 
priesthood.  Whatever  be  the  title  by  which  the  clergy  of 
the  first  order  is  called,  you  are  in  no  danger  of  mistaking 
them  for  the  second. 

Clement  of  Rome,  who  wrote  about  A.  D.  96,  is  our 
first  authority.  His  epistle  addressed  to  the  Corinthians,  is 
the  earliest  and  most  authentic  of  all  the  writings  of  the 
apostolical  fathers.  It  was  held  in  such  esteem  by  the 
early  Christians,  that  it  was  publicly  read  in  their  religious 
assemblies,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  apostolical  epistles. ^^ 
And,  by  ecclesiastical  writers  generally,  nothing  that  is 
not  divine  is  admitted  to  be  of  higher  authority.  This 
revered  father  recognizes  but  two  orders  of  the  priesthood, 
bishops  and  deacons,  ijitoitondvg  ttal  diaxovovg.  It  gives  not 
the  least  intimation  of  an  individual  bishop  at  Corinth, 
uniformly  speaking  of  the  presbyters  of  that  church  whom 
the  Corinthians  had  rejected,  as  belonging  to  the  highest 
order.  "  The  apostles  preaching  in  countries  and  cities, 
appointed  the  first  fruits  of  their  labors  to  be  bishops  and 
deacons,  hdiYmg  proved  them  by  the  Spirit."^'''  These  are 
the  two  orders  of  the  ministry,  as  originally  appointed  by 
the  apostles.  "  It  were  a  grievous  sin,"  he  proceeds  to 
say,  "  to  reject  those  who  have  faithfully  fulfilled  the  duties 
of  their  Episcopal  office,  and  immediately  adds,  "blessed 
are  those  presbyters,  who  have  finished  their  course  and 
entered  upon  their  reward,"  ^^  i.  e.,  blessed  are  those  pres- 
byters who  have  thus  faithfully  performed  the   duties  of 

56  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  3,  c.  13. 

"jiCaTOc  /(ogag  ^v  xal  noleig  xygvaaovreg  xaOiguvov  r&g 
d.Ttaqx'^Q  aurwi',  doxi^ndaavTsg  tqJ  Tcvevf/ari,  slg  iTTiaxonsg  teal 
dianovsg  lUiV  (.hsIIuvtojv  nigsveiv.—Epist.  ad  Cor.,  §  42,  p.  57. 

^^"JfiuQiia  yuQ  8  ituxgCc  rifdv  egai,  lav  xhg  dL>j.E^mro}g  xai 
6uio)g  irgouEvsYKOVjag  tul  dii}Qa  TTJg  inicrxonrig  dTto^dloJiusv. 
MccKGcQi'Oi  ol  nooodoiTioqriaavieg  TCQBG^ixsQov,  o^iiivsg  eyxagnov 
xal  jelelav  eaxov  ti^v  apulvoiv .—Epist.  ad  Cor.,  §  44,  p.  58. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  165 

their  Episcojml  office;  bishops  and  presbyters  being  used 
interchangeably  as  descriptive  of  the  same  order.  This  pas- 
sage establishes  the  identity  of  bishops  and  presbyters  in 
the  opinion  of  this  venerable  author,  who  maybe  understood 
to  express  the  prevailing  opinion  both  at  Rome  and  at 
Corinth.  The  epistle  proceeds  on  the  evident  assumption, 
that  the  ministerial  office,  and  the  relations  between  pastor 
and  people,  were  the  same  in  both.  He  is  remonstrating 
with  the  Corinthians  for  expelling  certain  presbyters  from 
their  bishopric^  uno  ttj?  iniaxonri;.  "  Clement  himself," 
says  Riddle,  "  was  not  even  aware  of  the  distinction  be- 
tween bishops  and  presbyters  —  terms  which  in  fact  he  uses 
as  synonymous.  "^3 

Polycarp  is  our  next  witness.  This  father  was  familiar 
with  those  who  had  seen  our  Lord.  He  was  the  disciple 
of  John  the  apostle,  and  is  supposed  by  many  to  be  the 
angel  of  the  church  at  Smyrna,  in  Rev.  2  :  8.  Such  was 
the  respect  in  which  the  epistle  was  held  by  the  primitive 
Christians,  that  it  was  publicly  read  in  their  churches  until 
the  fourth  century.  This  valuable  relic  of  antiquity,  the 
date  of  which  is  usually  assigned  to  the  year  140,  har- 
monizes in  a  remarkable  degree  with  that  of  Clement,  in 
recognizing  but  two  orders  of  the  clergy. ^^^  The  first  it 
denominates  preshyters.  Bishops  are  not  once  named  in 
all  the  epistle.  These  presbyters  are  represented  to  have 
been  the  inspectors  and  rulers  of  the  church,  to  administer 
discipline,  and  to  exercise  the  functions  of  the  highest 
officer  of  the  church.  Nor  is  there  the  least  intimation 
that  any  one  has  authority  superior  to  these. 

As  the  author  of  the  epistle,  and'  apparently  the  presiding 
elder,  the  nooeaT^g  of  the  church,  he  opens  the  letter  with 

59  Christ.  Antiq.,  p.  5.  Comp.  Waddington's  Church  Hist.,  p.  35.  Camp- 
bell's Lectures,  p.  72. 

^°  z/to  ^£01'  ccTiexsodat  dno  nuviotv  jovibiv  vTtOTcxcrao/uivovg 
ToTg  noea^vTbOoig  zui  diunovoig  (hg  Oea  aal  Xqicidi. — 
Ad,  Fhil,  c.  6. 


166  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  usual  Christian  salutation  to  the  church  whom  he  ad- 
dresses, coupled  with  that  of  his  fellow-presbyters.  "  Poly- 
carp  and  the  presbyters  with  him,  to  the  church  of  God 
dwelling  at  Philippi,  mercy  to  you,  and  peace  be  multiplied 
from  God  Almighty,  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour." 
Paul  in  his  salutation  addresses  the  bishops  and  deacons  of 
this  church.  Polycarp  in  his,  speaks  only  of  presbyters 
and  deacons.  If  there  were  three  orders  of  clergy  at 
Philippi,  the  omission  of  one  by  the  apostle,  and  another 
by  this  apostolical  father  is  unaccountable.  The  advice  of 
Polycarp  to  the  church  "  to  be  subject  to  the  presbyters  and 
deacons,''^  becomes  particularly  irrelevant  and  improper,  on 
the  supposition,  that  the  government  of  the  church  was 
vested  in  a  bishop.  The  conclusion,  therefore,  is  inevitable, 
that  bishop  and  presbyter  are  still  used  interchangeably,  and 
both  Paul  and  Polycarp  speak  of  the  same  class  of  per- 
sons. Clement  and  Polycarp  were  contemporaries  and 
survivors  of  the  apostles.  They  resided  the  one  at  Eome, 
the  other  in  Asia  Minor,  and  represent  different  bodies  of 
the  Christian  church,  remote  from  each  other,  and  widely 
different  in  language,  in  government,  and  in  national  pe- 
culiarities. The  ecclesiastical  polity  of  these  four  churches 
may  fairly  be  assumed  as  an  example  of  the  usage  of  others 
at  this  time- 

From  all  that  we  can  gather  from  their  writings,  no  ofHce 
existed  in  the  churches  either  of  Rome,  Corinth,  Smyrna, 
or  Philippi,  superior  to  that  of  presbyter ;  nor  is  there  any 
indication  of  diversity  of  order,  degree,  ordination,  or 
power,  between  the  several  presbyters  or  bishops  of  those 
churches ;  save  that  of  senior  or  moderator,  the  ngoeuTfbg 
of  their  body. 

It  is  also  particularly  noticeable,  that  Polycarp  specifies 
the  qualifications  necessary  both  for  deacons,^!  and  for 
presbyters ;  62   and,  like    Paul,  the    apostle,    on   a    similar 

61  Ep.,  c.  5.  62  Ep.^  c.  6. 


EQUALITY    OF    BlSIIOrS    AND    TRESBYTERS.  167 

occasion,    Tit.    1:  5 — 9,  makes   no   mention   of  what   is 
proper  in  the  conduct  and  character  of  a  bishop. 

Justin  Martyr,  the  Christian  philosopher,  who  suffered 
martyrdom  A.  D.  165,  two  years  before  Polycarp,  offers 
further  confirmation  of  these  views  of  the  subject.  Never 
himself  holding  any  clerical  office,  his  relations  to  the 
church,  his  learning-,  his  candor,  his  piety,  and  his  death, 
all  concur  to  render  him  an  unexceptionable  witness.  In 
his  description  of  public  worship,  after  mentioning  prayers 
and  the  fraternal  salutation,  he  says, —  "  There  is  brought 
to  him  who  presides  over  the  brethren,  tw  nQoeajmt  tZ^v 
adekcpojv,  bread  and  a  cup  of  water,  and  wine,  and  he  taking 
them  offers  up  praise  and  glory  to  the  Father  of  the 
universe,  through  the  name  of  the  Son  and  the  Holy 
Ghost,  and  renders  thanks  for  these,  his  gifts.  At  the  close 
of  his  petition  and  thanksgivings,  all  the  people  present 
say  Amen  ;  which,  in  the  Hebrew  language,  signifies  may 
it  be  so.  And  he  who  presides,  having  given  thanks,  and 
the  whole  assembly  having  expressed  their  assent,  they 
who  are  called  among  us  deacons,  diaxovoi,  distribute  the 
bread,  and  the  wine,  and  water  to  each  of  those  who  are 
present,  to  partake  of  that  which  has  been  blessed.  Also 
they  carry  to  those  who  are  not  present."  63 

His   testimony,  in  the  passage   above  cited,  is  that  two 

^\4delq>ol   Jtoi^vag   ev/ug  TTOivao^iEvoi  -vnet^  re  eavrwp  y.al 

Tov  cfMxiaOsvTog   y.ul   allo)v  navruxov  ndPTtov  EiidvMg. 

aXX^^ilovg  q)LlriuaTi'  dcaTta'Qofisda  navadfisvot  tCov  e  lu  /  (a  v  . 
^eTtena  TiQogcpsoeTat  iGnQOEOTibxiT^v  dcdsXcpfov  agTog 
xal  noiriqiov  vdarog  yal  ygduarog,  xal  ohxog  Xa^<hv,  aii'ov  xai 
dd^av  rw  tiutqI  tCou  oImp,  dice  lov  dpo/narog  rod  vlov  xal  tov 
nvevfiaTog  rov  dylov,  dcvandfiTrEi  xal  s^u/nQvaTlav  {msQ 
TOV  xan/^iwadav  TOvTCov  rrag  aiuwv  inl  nolv  7C0teXTat,.  ov 
avvTsXeaavTog  rug  evxu.;  xal  iriv  Ev/agioilar,  nag  6  Tiaq^v 
Xabg  InEvcfTjiiEl  Xeycov,  '^fti]r. —  ed/uQiaTri&avTog  ds  tov 
TtgoscrribTog,  xal  insvq^rjur'^aavTog  navjog  rod  Xaov^ol  xaXovuhvoi 
nag  -fiuii^d iixxovoi^didouaiv  hxikavco  riav  nagovrcov /nsraXa^eTv. 
—ApoL,  1,  c.  65,  p.  82. 


168  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

orders  only  officiated  in  tlieir  public  worship  and  in  their 
celebration  of  the  eucharist.  Soon  after  this,  he  again  de- 
scribes their  mode  of  public  worship,  and  of  communion, 
and  specifies  the  same  officiating  officers,  the  president  of 
the  brethren,  and  the  deacons.^^  Nothing  occurs,  either  in 
the  narrative,  or  in  the  distinctive  epithet,  to  indicate  any 
higher  order  or  office  than  that  of  the  officiating  presbyter 
who  conducted  their  worship  and  administered  the  sacra- 
ment ;  or  if  you  call  him  bishop,  he  is  still  of  the  same 
order,  distinguished  clearly  from  the  deacons,  but  differing 
in  no  wise  from  the  order  of  presbyters. 

Upon  the  import  of  this  yr^oearwc,  of  Justin,  aboiat  which 
so  much  is  said,  the  following  remarks  of  Milton  are 
worthy  of  particular  consideration:  —  "Now  for  the  word 
Ttgoeaiihg,  it  is  more  likely  that  Timothy  never  knew  the 
word  in  that  sense.  It  was  the  vanity  of  those  next  suc- 
ceeding times  not  to  content  themseh^es  with  the  simplicity 
of  Scripture  phrase,  but  must  make  a  new  lexicon  to  name 
themselves  by;  one  will  be  called  Ttgosarwg,  or  antistes,  a 
word  of  precedence  ;  another  would  be  termed  a  gnostic, 
as  Clemens  ;  a  third,  sacerdos,  or  priest,  and  talks  of  altars ; 
which  was  a  plain  sign  that  their  doctrine  began  to  change, 
for  which  they  must  change  their  expressions.  But  that 
place  of  Justin  Martyr  serves  rather  to  convince  the  author, 
than  to  make  for  him,  where  the  name  ngoeanhg  twv  dLdelq:>Q)v, 
the  president  or  pastor  of  the  brethren  (for  to  what  end  is 
he  their  president  but  to  teach  them  ?)  cannot  be  limited 
to  signify  a  prelatical  bishop,  but  rather  communicates  that 
Greek  appellation  to  every  ordinary  presbyter  ;  for  there  he 
tells  what  the  Christians  had  wont  to  do  in  their  several 
congregations,  to  read  and  expound,  to  pray  and  administer, 
all  which  he  says  the  Ttgosuiiog,  or  antistes,  did.  Are  these 
the  offices  only  of  a  bishop,  or  shall  we  think  that  every 
congregation  where  these  things  were  done,  which  he  attri- 

64  Apol.,  1;  c.  67,  p.  83. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  169 

butes  to  this  '  antistes,'  had  a  bishop  present  among  them  ? 
unless  they  had  as  many  '  antistites'  as  presbyters,  which 
this  place  rather  seems  to  imply ;  and  so  we  may  infer 
even  from  their  own  alleged  authority,  '  that  antistes  was 
nothing  else  but  presbyter.'  "^5 

Having  now  passed  the  middle  of  the  second  century, 
and  found  only  two  orders  in  the  church,  we  may  fairly 
conclude  that  such  was  the  organization  adopted  by  the 
apostles.  This  early  and  uniform  usage  is  a  fair  construc- 
tion of  their  authority  and  example.  But  the  evidence 
already  adduced  is  corroborated  by  other  authorities. 

Irenaeus,  a  Greek,  of  Asia  Minor,  was  in  his  youth  a 
hearer  of  the  venerable  Polycarp,  the  disciple  of  John. 
He  spent  his  advanced  life  in  Gaul,  at  Lyons,  and  died 
about  the  commencement  of  the  third  century,  probably  A. 
D.  202.  Speaking  of  Marcion,  Valentinus,  Cerinthus,  and 
other  heretics,  he  says  :  —  "  When  we  refer  them  to  that 
apostolic  tradition,  which  is  preserved  in  the  churches, 
through  the  succession  of  their  presbyters,  these  men  op- 
pose the  tradition ;  pretending  that,  being  more  wise  than,, 
not  only  the  presbyters,  but  the  apostles  themselves,  they 
have  found  the  uncorrupted  truth. "<56  Continuing  the  same 
course  of  reasoning,  the  author,  in  the  next  section,  agaia 
styles  these  same  presbyters,  bishops.  "  We  can  enumerate 
those  who  were  constituted  by  the  apostles,  bishops  in  the 
churches ;  their  successors,  also,  even  down  to  our  time. — 
But  because  it  would  be  tedious,  in  such  a  volume  as  this, 
to  enumerate  the  successions  in  all  the  churches,  showing 
to  you  the  tradition  and  declared  faith  of  the  greatest  and 
most  ancient  and  noted  church,  founded  at  Rome  by  the 

65  Milton's  Prelatical  Episcopacy,  Prose  Works,  Vol.  1,  p.  76. 

66  Cum  autem  ad  earn  iterum  traditionem,  quae  est  ab  Apostolis,  quae 
per  successiones  Presbyterorum  in  ecclesiis  custoditur,  provocamus  eos  : 
adversantur  traditioni,  dicentes,  se  non  solum  Presbyteris,  sed  etiam 
Apostolis  exsistentes  sapientiores,  sinceram  invenisse  veritatem. — Irenaeus^ 
Adv.  Haer.,  L.  3,  c.  2,  ^  2,  p.  175. 

15 


170  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

two  glorious  apostles,  Peter  and  Paul,  which  she  received 
from  the  apostles,  and  is  come  to  us  through  the  successions 
of  the  bishops,  we  confound  all  who  conclude  otherwise 
than  they  ought,  by  what  means  soever  they  do  so."^^ 

But  the  very  same  traditions  and  successions,  which 
are  here  ascribed  to  the  bishops,  are  just  above  assigned 
also  to  presbyters. 

Again,  treating  of  the  churches  of  Smyrna  and  Ephesus, 
he  speaks  in  a  similar  connection,  of  Polycarp,  as  a  hishop  ; 
but  in  another  place,  he  styles  him  that  blessed  and  apos' 
tolical  presbyter,  hxsivog  6  fiax&giog  xal  dnocrwhxog  ngscr- 

Again,  "  We  ought  to  obey  those  presbyters  in  the  church, 
who  have  succession,  as  we  have  shown,  from  the  apostles ; 
who,  with  the  succession  of  the  Episcopate,  received  the 
certain  gift  of  truth,  according  to  the  good  pleasure  of  the 
Father."69 

67  Traditionem  itaque  Apostolorum  in  toto  mundo  manifestatam  in  omni 
ecclesia  adest  respicere  omnibus,  qui  vera  velint  videre ;  et  habemus 
annumerare  eos,  qui  ab  Apostolis  instituti  sunt  Episcopi  in  ecclesiis, 
et  successores  eorum  usque  ad  nos,  qui  nihil  tale  docuerunt,  neque 
cognoverunt,  quale  ab  his  deliratur. — Sed  quoniam  valde  longum  est  in 
hoc  tali  volumine,  omnium  ecclesiarum  enumerare  successiones,  maximae 
et  antiquissimae  et  omnibus  cognitae,  a  gloriosissimis  duobus  Apostolis 
Petro  et  Paulo  Romae  fundatae  et  constitutae  ecclesiae  earn,  quam  habet 
ab  Apostolis  traditionem  et  annuntiatam  hominibus  fidem,  per  successiones 
Episcoporum  pervenientem  usque  ad  nos  indicantes^  confundimus  omnes, 
etc.— Irenaeus,  c.  3,  §  1,  p.  175,  et  §  2,  ibid. 

68  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  5,  c.  20. 

69  Quapropter  eis,  qui  in  ecclesiis  sunt,  Presbyteris  obaudire  oportet,  his, 
qui  successionem  habent  ab  Apostolis,  sicut  ostendimus  ;  qui  cum  Epis- 
copatus  successione  charisma  veritatis  certum  secundum  placitum  Patris 
acceperunt,  etc.  After  this, — Qui  vero  crediti  quidem  sunt  a  multis  esse 
Presbyteri,  serviunt  autem  suis  voluptatibus,  et  non  praeponunt  timorem 
Dei  in  cordibus  suis,  sed  contumeliis  agunt  reliquos,  et  principalis  con- 
sessionis  tumore  elati  sunt  et  in  absconsis  agunt  mala,  et  dicunt,  7iemo  nos 
videt,  redarguentur  a  verbo,  etc.  Further  on, — Ab  omnibus  igitur  talibus 
absistere  oportet,  adhaerere  vero  his,  qui  et  Apostolorum,  sicut  praediximus, 
doctrinam  custodiunt,  et  cum  Presbyterii  ordine  sermonem  sanum  et  con- 
versationem  sine  ofFensa  praestant,  ad  confirmationem  et  correptionem 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  17] 

"And  truly,  they  who  by  many  are  regarded  as  presbyters^ 
but  serve  their  own  pleasures,  and,  not  having  the  fear  of 
God  in  their  hearts,  but  elated  with  the  pride  of  their 
exaltation  to  the  chief  seat,  commit  wickedness  in  secret, 
saying,  no  one  seeth  us  —  they  shall  be  convicted. — From 
all  such  w^e  ought  to  withdraw,  and,  as  we  have  said,  to 
adhere  to  those  who  maintain  the  doctrine  of  the  apostles, 
and  who,  with  the  order  of  the  presbyter  ship  or  of  a  presbyter, 
preserve  sound  doctrine  and  a  blameless  conversation  for 
the  confirmation  and  reproof  of  others." 

Again,  he  says,  that  they  who  cease  to  serve  the  church 
in  the  ministry,  are  a  reproach  to  the  sacred  order  of  the 
presbyters;  but  he  had  just  before  styled  these  same  persons 
bishops?^ 

In  his  letter  to  the  Roman  bishop  Victor,  he  spealcs 
of  the  presbyters,  who  had  presided  over  the  church  in  that 
city  before  that  bishop .  One  of  these  bishops,  the  prede- 
cessors of  Victor  was  Anicetus,  whom  Polycarp  endeavored 
in  vain  to  persuade  to  "  retain  the  usage  of  the  presbyters 
who  had  preceded  him."'''! 

We  submit  the  above  extracts  to  the  attention  of  the 
reader,  who  cannot  fail  to  observe,  that  the  terms,  bishop 
and  presbyter,  are  used  by  this  ancient  father,  as  perfectly 
convertible  terms.  Bishops  he  denominates  presbyters ; 
and  presbyters,  bishops.  In  so  many  words  he  ascribes 
the  Episcopate  to  presbyters.  They  unitedly  constitute 
but  one  order  in  the  priesthood.     Both  Justin  and  Irenaeus 

ceterorum.  Finally,  Totoviovg  TlQSG^vxEQOvg  uraTQscpst  i^ 
ixxh]ala,  negl  6)v  nal  6  TiQOcpr^irjg  cprjaLV-  diaaoj  TOvg  ug^ovTijcg 
aou  iv  slQ-qfTj  xal  rovg  hTitaxonovg  hf  dLxaioavvr^. — 
Irenaem,  L.  4,  c.'SG,  §  2,  3,  4,'p.  262,  §  5,  p.  263. 

■''0  Qui  ergo  relinquunt  praeconium  ecclesiae  imperitiam  sanctorum  ;?rcs- 
byierorum  arguunt,  non  contemplantes  quanto  pluris  sit  idiota  religiosus 
a  blaspheme  et  impudente  sophista,  L.  5,  c.  20,  §  2.  In  the  preceding 
section,  he  says,  Omnes  enim  valde  posteriores  sunt  quam  episcopi  quibua 
apostoli  tradiderunt  ecclesias.  §  1. 

71  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  5,  c.  24. 


172  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

represent  the  churches  of  Asia  Minor.  The  former  also 
resided  for  many  years  in  the  Western  part  of  the  Roman 
empire.  Their  concurring  testimony  shows  that  both  the 
Eastern  and  Western  churches  still  retained  the  apostolical 
institution  of  two  orders  of  the  clergy. 

We  are  not  ignorant  of  the  gloss  that  is  given  to  these 
passages  from  Irenaeus,  in  the  endeavor  to  defend  the 
theory  of  an  original  distinction  between  bishops  and 
presbyters.  But  the  consideration  of  the  Episcopal  argu- 
ment is  foreign  to  our  purpose.  The  authorities  are  before 
the  reader ;  and  of  their  obvious  meaning,  any  one  is  com- 
petent to  form  an  independent,  unaided  judgment. 

Titus  Flavins  Clemens,  commonly  known  as  Clement 
of  Alexandria,  lived  at  the  close  of  the  second  and  begin- 
ning of  the  third  century.  He  was  at  the  head  of  the 
celebrated  school  at  Alexandria,  the  preceptor  of  Origen, 
and  the  most  learned  man  of  his  age.  He  speaks  indeed 
of  presbyters,  bishops  and  deacons.  After  citing  from  the 
epistles  various  practical  precepts,  he  proceeds  to  say  that 
"  numerous  other  precepts  also,  directed  to  select  characters, 
have  been  written  in  the  sacred  books,  some  to  presbyters^ 
some  to  bishops,  some  to  deacons,  and  others  to  widows." "''^ 
In  this  enumeration  he  appears  to  have  followed  the 
order  of  the  apostle  in  Tit.  1 :  5,  6,  7,  mentioning  presby- 
ters first.  He  repeatedly  shows,  however,  that  there  were 
but  two  orders,  deacons  and  presbyters  ;  having  observed 
that  in  most  things  there  are  two  sorts  of  ministry,  the  one 
of  a  nobler  nature  than  the  other,  which  is  subservient;  and 
having  illustrated  this  distinction  by  several  other  exam- 
ples, he  says,  "  Just  so  in  the  church,  the  presbyters  are 
entrusted  with  the  dignified  ministry ;  the  deacons,  with  the 
subordinate. "'''3     He  also  speaks  of  a  ngojiadsSgla^  or  first 

72  Paedag.,  Lib.  3,  p.  264.     Comp.  also  Strom.,  Lib.  6,  p.  667. 

^^' O^uoUog  da  xul  y.aTunfv  iy.Kh]Cj[av.  jrfv  f.iE  v  ^eljiOTiavi)  ol 
TTQEO^vxeiov  adi'Covaiv,  eIxopu  jifv  luTtsgiiHt/v  ol  diaxovot. — 
Strom.,  Lib.  7,  p.  700. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  173 

seat  in  the  presbytery.  From  all  which,  the  obvious 
inference  is,  that  the  bishop  of  this  author  is  only  the 
nQoeaiibg  of  earlier  writers,  the  presiding  elder  of  the  pres. 
bytery.  Henceforth  the  title  of  nQoeaTibg  seldom  occurs 
in  the  fathers,  but  instead  of  it  that  of  hnlaaonog,  bishop, 
constantly  occurs. 

In  his  treatise,  "  What  rich  man  can  be  saved  ? "  Clement 
relates  that  John,  the  apostle,  observing  a  young  man 
of  singular  beauty,  was  so  struck  with  his  appearance, 
that  turning  to  the  bishop  that  presided  over  all,  he  com- 
mitted him  to  his  care  in  the  presence  of  the  church. 
John,  after  repeating  the  charge,  is  said  to  have  returned 
to  Ephesus,  and  "  this  presbyter,"  taking  home  the  young 
man  that  had  been  committed  to  his  care,  nourished,  educa- 
ted, and  lost  him.  John  himself,  on  his  return,  is  repre- 
sented to  have  addressed  this  same  presbyter  as  a  bishop, 
"  0  bishop,  return  to  us  your  charge.'^^  Here  then  Clement 
uses  interchangeably  the  terms,  bishop  and  presbyter,  to 
designate  the  same  person,  and  makes  John  address,  as 
bishop,  one  who  was,  notwithstanding,  a  presbyter. 

"  In  this  author  we  find  a  presbytery  and  deacons  only, 
which  is  as  forcible  an  exclusion  of  a  third  order,  whether 
superior  or  intermediate,  as  can  be  reasonably  expected 
from  a  writer,  who  had  no  knowledge  of  a  third." 

The  account  of  Tertullian  again,  contemporary  with 
Clement,  both  having  died  the  same  year,  A.  D.  218,  har- 
monizes in  a  remarkable  manner  with  that  of  Justin  Martyr, 
as  above  related.  In  describing  the  worship  of  Christian 
assemblies,  he  observes,  "  Certain  approved  elders  preside 
who  have  obtained  that  honor,  not  by  price,  but  by  the  evi- 
dence of  their  fitness. ""^^  Aged  men  never  presided  by 
virtue  of  their  age,  in  ancient  Christian  assemblies.     Be- 

74  Chap.  42,  pp.  G67,  669,  Vol.  7,  Sanct.  Pat.  Op.  Polemica. 

75  Praesident  probati  quique  seniores  honorem  istum  non  pretio,  sed 
testimonio  adepti  3  neque  enim  pretio  uUa  res  Dei  constat. — Apol.,  c.  39. 

15=^ 


174  THE    PRBIITIVE    CHURCH. 

sides,  the  passage  distinctly  asserts  that  these  presidents 
were  chosen  to  their  office.  They  administered  the  sacrament 
and  fulfilled  the  office  of  the  Trgoeuibjg  of  Justin  Martyr. 
"  We  never  take  from  the  hand  of  others  than  presidents, 
praesidentium,  the  sacrament  of  the  eucharist,"  says  Ter- 
tullian."''^  The  president  is  also  denominated  in  the  same 
chapter,  antistes,  a  term  exactly  corresponding  to  that  of 
nqosaiihg  in  Justin.  That  this  president,  styled  also  bishop, 
is  only  the  presiding  and  officiating  presbyter,  is  sufficiently 
apparent  from  another  passage  in  Tertullian.  "  The  highest 
priest,  who  is  the  bishop,  has  the  right  of  granting  bap- 
tism ;  afterwards,  the  presbyters  and  deacons  ;  not,  however, 
without  the  authority  of  the  bishops  for  the  honor  of  the 
church. "■^^  The  highest  priest  implies  the  existence  of 
inferiors  of  the  same  grade.  What  then  is  the  bishop, 
but  a  presbyter  elevated  to  the  office  of  a  president  or 
moderator  ?  That  this  office  implies  no  superiority  in  order 
or  grade,  appears  from  the  fact  that  he  was  appointed  to 
this  office,  not  by  any  scriptural  or  apostolical  ordination  or 
appointment,  but  for  the  preservation  of  the  honor  and 
peace  of  the  church. 

Tertullian  represents  another  division  of  the  church  in 
Africa,  in  which  the  Episcopal  government  was  earliest 
developed;  but  even  in  these  churches  the  apostolical  order 
has  not  yet  been  fully  superseded  by  the  hierarchy.  The 
sum  of  his  testimony,  and  that  of  all  who  have  gone  before  him 
is,  that  there  is  but  one  order  of  officers  in  the  church  superior 
to  that  of  deacons.  The  government  of  the  church  was, 
at  this  time,  in  a  transition  state.  Tertullian  stood,  as  has 
been  justly  observed  "  on  the  boundary  between  two  different 
epochs  in  the  development  of  the  church."  The  bishop 
begins  to  assume  more  prominence;  but  he  has  not  yet  be- 

76  De  Corona,  c.  3,  p.  102. 

77  Dandi  baptismum  quidem  habet  jus  summus  sacerdos  qui  est  episcopus 
Dehinc  presbyteri  et  diaconi;  non  tamen  sine  episcopi  auctoritate  propter 
ecclesiae  honorem. — De  Bapt.,  c.  17. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  175 

gun  to  be  acknowledged  as  one  of  an  order  superior  to 
presbyters.  From  the  apostles  downwards  he  has  only  been 
one  among  his  fellow-presbyters,  having  merely  the  con- 
ventional distinction  which  any  presiding  officer  may  have 
who  is  appointed  president  of  a  body,  all  whose  members 
are  in  the  enjoyment  of  equal  rights  and  privileges.  What- 
ever apostolical  succession  there  has  been  thus  far,  has  been 
through  a  line  of  presbyters  by  presbyterian  ordination.  The 
lists  which  Irenaeus  has  given  of  primitive  bishops  are  only 
catalogues  of  presbyters  bearing  this  title.  The  usurpation 
of  Episcopal  prerogative,  the  assumption  of  divine  right,  and 
all  the  innovations  which  we  are  soon  to  witness  in  their 
general  progress,  are  unauthorized,  anti-scriptural,  and  con- 
sequently mere  nullities  ;  and  such  they  must  ever  continue 
to  be,  notwithstanding  the  incredible  assurance  with  which 
their  canonical  authority  is  asserted,  and  the  ceaseless  re- 
petition of  the  assertion.  General  assertions  are  easily 
made ;  and,  when  made  boldly  and  perpetually  repeated, 
do  sometimes  by  confident  repetition  ensure  reception. 
But  I  know  not  how  any  man  who  knows  what  proof  is, 
and  what  the  proof  is  in  the  present  case,  can  venture 
on  such  assumptions.  What  if  Tertullian,  Clement,  Ire- 
naeus and  others,  tell  us  of  bishops  ?  "  It  remains  yet  to 
be  evinced  out  of  this  and  the  like  places,  which  will  never 
be,  that  the  word  bishop  is  otherwise  taken,  than  in  the 
language  of  St.  Paul  and  the  Acts,  for  an  order  above 
presbyters.  We  grant  them  bishops,  we  grant  them  worthy 
men,  w^e  grant  .them  placed  in  several  churches  by  the 
apostles,  we  grant  that  Irenaeus  and  Tertullian  affirm  this  ; 
but  that  they  were  placed  in  a  superior  order  above  the 
presbytery,  show  from  all  these  words  why  we  should 
grant.  It  is  not  enough  to  say  that  the  apostle  left  this 
man  bishop  in  Rome,  and  that  other  in  Ephesus,  but  to  show 
when  they  altered  their  own  decree  set  down  by  St.  Paul, 
and  made  all  the  presbyters  underlings  to  one  bishop.  "'''^ 

78  Milton's  Prelatical  Episcopacy,  Prose  Works,  Vol.  I,  p.  85. 


176  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

3.  Presbyters  were  understood  in  the  early  ages  of 
Christianity  to  possess  the  right  to  ordain,  and  generally 
to  perform,  the  functions  of  the  Episcopal  office. 

The  right  of  presbyters  to  ordain,  and  the  validity  of 
ordination  administered  by  them,  is  a  direct  inference  from 
what  has  already  been  said  of  their  identity  with  bishops. 
Clement  knows  nothing  of  any  distinction  between  bishops 
and  presbyters.  Polycarp  knows  nothing  of  bishops.  Each 
specifies  but  two  orders  or  grades  of  officers  in  the  church, 
of  whom  deacons  are  one.  Presbyters  or  bishops,  of 
necessity  form  the  other  grade,  and  are  one  and  the  same. 
Justin  Martyr  again  speaks  of  only  two  grades,  of  whom 
deacons  are  one.  Irenaeus,  still  later,  uses  the  titles, 
bishop  and  presbyter,  as  perfectly  convertible  terms ;  and 
Clement  of  Alexandria  and  TertuUian  recognize  no  clear 
distinction  between  bishops  and  presbyters  as  different 
orders.  If  therefore  there  were,  in  the  ages  immediately 
succeeding  the  apostles,  but  two  orders  in  the  church,  if 
bishops  and  presbyters  are  still  but  different  names  for  the 
same  office,  as  they  were  in  the  churches  founded  by  the 
apostles,  then  assuredly  presbyters  had  the  right  to  ordain. 
The  ordaining  power  was  vested  in  them,  as  the  highest 
order  of  ecclesiastical  officers. 

We  have,  however,  direct  authority  in  proof  that  presby- 
ters, in  the  primitive  church,  did  themselves  ordain.  This 
is  found  in  the  epistle  of  Firmilian  from  Asia  Minor,  to 
Cyprian  in  Carthage,  A.  D.  256.  In  explanation  of  the 
ecclesiastical  polity  of  these  churches,  he  says,  "All  power 
and  grace  is  vested  in  the  church,  where  the  presbyters, 
major es  natu,  preside,  who  have  authority  to  baptize,  to 
impose  hands  [in  the  reconciling  of  penitents],  and  to 
ordain.'''''^     Firmilian  wrote  in  the  Greek  language,  from 

79  Omnis  potestas  et  gratia  in  ecclesia  constituta  sit  3  ubi  praesident 
majores  natu,  qui  et  baptizandi,  et  inanum  imponendi,  et  ordinandi,  possi- 
dent,  potestatem.— Cyprian,  Epist.  Id,  p.  145. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  177 

Asia ;  but  we  have  a  Latin  translation  of  his  epistle  in  the 
writings  of  Cyprian.  No  one  who  has  any  acquaintance 
with  these  languages,  can  doubt  that  the  majores  natu  of 
the  Latin  is  a  translation  of  Ttgea^vTegoi,  in  the  original. 
Both  the  terms,  noeo^vriooL  and  majores  natu,  mean  the 
same  thing;  and  each  may,  with  equal  propriety,  be 
rendered  aged  men,  elders,  presbytersfi^  The  Episcopal 
hierarchy  was  not  fully  established  in  these  Eastern 
churches  so  early  as  in  the  Western.  Accordingly,  we 
find  the  presbyters  here  in  the  full  enjoyment  still  of  their 
original  right  to  ordain.  The  general  tenor  of  the  letter, 
in  connection  with  this  passage,  exhibits  the  popular  gov- 
ernment of  the  apostolical  churches  as  yet  in  exercise  in 
the  churches  of  Asia.  The  highest  authority  is  vested  in 
the  church,  who  still  administer  their  own  government. 
No  restrictions  have  yet  been  laid  upon  the  presbyters  in 
the  administration  of  the  ordinances.  Whatever  clerical 
grace  is  essential  for  the  right  administration  of  baptism, 
of  consecration,  and  of  ordination,  is  still  retained  by  the 
presbyters. 

This  authority  is  in  perfect  harmony  with  that  of  Irenaeus 
given  above,  that  the  succession  and  the  Episcopate  had 
come  down  to  his  day,  the  latter  end  of  the  second  century, 
through  a  series  of  presbyters,  who,  with  the  Episcopate, 
enjoyed  the  rights,  and  exercised  the  prerogatives,  of 
bishops,  ordination  being  of  course  included.     "  This  pas- 


80  Reeves,  the  translator  of  Justin,  a  churchman,  who  loses  no  opportu- 
nity of  opposing  sectarians,  allows  in  his  notes  on  the  passage,  TT^Oif  OTO)?, 
&c.,  that  this  7ioo)eaT(ji}g  of  Justin,  the  probati  seniores  of  Tertullian,  the 
majores  natu  of  Firmilian,  and  the  ngosonaTSg  nQea^vrsooi,  or  pre- 
siding presbyters  of  St.  Paul,  1  Tim.  4 :  17,  were  all  one  and  the  same. 
Now  Tertullian,  Cyprian,  or  Firmilian,  the  celebrated  bishop  of  Caesarea 
in  Cappadocia,  and  St.  Paul,  all  mean  presbyters.  Their  language  cannot 
be  otherwise  interpreted  without  violence.  Presbyter,  says  Bishop  Jew- 
ell, is  expounded  in  Latin  by  major  natu. — Smyth's  Presbyt.  and  Prelacy, 
p.  367. 


178  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

sage,"  says  Goode,  "  appears  to  me  decisive  as  to  Irenseus's 
view  of  the  matter."  ^^ 

To  the  foregoing  testimonies  succeeds  that  of  the  author 
of  the  Commentaries  on  St.  Paul's  Epistles,  attributed  to 
Ambrose,  but  with  greater  probability  assigned  to  Hilary 
the  Deacon,  A.  D.  384.  "The  apostle  calls  Timothy, 
created  by  him  a  presbyter ^  a  bishop  (for  the  first  presby- 
ters were  called  bishops),  that  when  he  departed,  the  one 
that  came  next  might  succeed  him.  Moreover,  in  Egypt 
the  presbyters  confirm,  if  a  bishop  is  not  present.^s  But 
because  the  presbyters  that  followed  began  to  be  found 
unworthy  to  hold  the  primacy,  the  custom  was  altered ;  the 
Council  foreseeing  that  not  order,  but  merit,  ought  to  make 
a  bishop;  and  that  he  should  be  appointed  by  the  judgment 
of  many  priests,  lest  an  unworthy  person  should  rashly 
usurp  the  office,  and  be  a  scandal  to  many.^^ 

81  Goode's  Divine  Rule,  Vol.  II,  p.  m. 

82  Timothy  is  here  said,  we  may  observe,  to  have  been  ordained  a  ^res- 
hyter.  And  I  cannot  but  think  that  the  passage,  1  Tim.  4 :  14,  is  favorable 
to  this  view.  For  without  adopting  the  translation  which  some  have  given 
of  this  passage,  viz.,  "  with  the  laying  on  of  hands  for  the  office  of  a  pres- 
byter," if  we  retain  our  own  version,  which  appears  to  me  more  natural, 
who  or  what  is  "the  presbytery?"  Certainly  not  consisting  altogether  of 
the  apostles,  though  it  appears,  from  2  Tim.  1 :  6,  that  ordination  was 
received  by  Timothy  partly  from  St.  Paul.  But  if  presbyters  joined  in  that 
ordination,  it  could  not  be  to  a  higher  sacerdotal  grade  or  order  than  that 
of  the  presbyterhood.  Nor  is  this  inconsistent  with  his  being  called  else- 
where an  apostle,  which  name  might  be  given  him  as  one  appointed  to  be 
a  superintendent  of  a  church. — Divine  Rule,  Vol.  II,  p.  64. 

83  The  author  of  the  "  Quaestiones  in  Vet.  et  Nov.  Test.,"  which  have 
been  ascribed  to  Augustine,  but  are  probably  not  his,  says,  "  In  Alexandria, 
and  through  the  whole  of  Egypt,  if  there  is  no  bishop,  a  presbyter  conse- 
crates." (In  Alexandria  et  per  totam  ^gyptum  si  desit  Episcopus  consecrat 
presbyter.)  Where,  however,  one  MS.  reads,  confirms  (consignat).  See 
Aug.  Op.,  tom.  iii,  App.,  col.  93.  On  this  subject,  the  13th  canon  of  the 
Council  ofAncyra(in  the  code  of  the  Universal  Church)  is  also  worth 
notice. — Divine  Rule,  ibid. 

84  Timotheum,  presbyterum  a  se  creatum,  episcopum  vocat,  quia  primi 
presbyteri  episcopi  appellabantur,ut  recedente  uno  sequens  ei  succederet. 
Denique  apud  ^gyptum  presbyteri  consignant  si  praesens  non  sit  episco- 
pus.   Sed  quia  coeperunt  sequentes  presbyteri  indigni  inveniri  ad  primatus 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  179 

This  passage,  then,  clearly  contradicts  the  notion  of  our 
opponents  as  to  the  essential  necessity  by  apostolical  ordi- 
nance of  the  successional  Episcopal  consecration  of  all 
bishops.85 

A  presbyter,  you  will  observe,  becomes  the  successor  of 
the  apostle ;  and  the  apostolical  succession  comes  down 
through  him,  as  a  bishop  ;  plainly  contradicting  the  notion 
that  the  grace  of  ordination  is  restricted  to  a  succession  of 
bishops  exclusively,  and  establishing,  in  the  opinion  of  this 
author,  the  validity  of  presbyterian  ordination.  To  this 
effect  is  this  same  author.  "  After  the  bishop,  the  apostle 
has  subjoined  the  ordination  (order)  of  the  deaconship. 
Why;  but  that  the  ordination  (order)  of  a  bishop  and 
presbyter  is  one  and  the  same  ?  For  each  is  a  priest ;  but 
the  bishop  is  chief;  so  that  every  bishop  is  a  presbyter,  but 
not  every  presbyter  a  bishop.  For  he  is  bishop  who  is  chief 
among  the  presbyters.  Moreover,  he  notices  that  Timothy 
was  ordained  a  presbyter,  but  inasmuch  as  he  had  no  other 
above  him,  he  was  a  bishop.''''  Hence  he  shows  that  Timothy, 
a  presbyter,  might  ordain  a  bishoy,  because  of  his  equality 
with  him.  "  For  it  was  neither  lawful  nor  right  for  an  in- 
ferior to  ordain  a  superior,  inasmuch  as  one  cannot  confer 
what  he  has  not  received."  ^^ 

tenendos,  immutata  est  ratio,  prospiciente  Concilio,  ut  non  ordo  sed 
meritum  crearet  episcopum  multorum  sacerdotum  judicio  constitutum  ne 
indignus  temere  usurparet  et  esset  multis  scandalum.  Comment,  in  Eph. 
4:  11,12.  Inter  Op.  Ambros.,  ed.  Ben.,  torn,  ii,  app.  col.  241,  242.  The 
''Council"  may,  I  suppose,  be  what  Tertullian  calls  "  consessus  ordinis." 

^5  There  are,  also,  indirect  confirmatory  proofs.  Such,  I  think,  is 
afforded  by  the  account  we  have  in  Eusebius  (vi,  29,)  of  the  appointment 
of  Fabianus  to  the  bishopric  of  Rome,  for  the  assembly  that  met  to  elect 
a  bishop  having  fixed  upon  him,  placed  him  at  once  oji  the  Episcopal  throne. 
(^AfielXsTcog  env  lov  dqovov  TTjg  Eniaxonr^g  Xaf-iovjag  avjov 
STttdeivai),  which  seems  to  me  irreconcileable  with  the  notion  of  the 
essential  necessity  of  Episcopal  consecration,  to  have  entitled  him  to  the 
Episcopal  seat,  for  he  was  installed  in  it  without  any  such  consecration. 

86  Post  Episcopum  tamen  Diaconi  ordinationem  subiicit.  Quare  ?  nisi 
quia  Episcopi  et  Presbyteri  una  ordinatio  est  ?     Uterque  enim  sacerdos 


180  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

There  is  another  passage  which  has  a  striking  coinci- 
dence with  the  foregoing,  and  is  probably  from  the  same 
author,  though  found  in  an  appendix  to  the  works  of 
Augustine.  "  That  by  presbyter  is  meant  a  bishop,  the 
apostle  Paul  proves,  when  he  instructs  Timothy  whom  he 
had  ordained  a  presbyter,  respecting  the  character  of  one 
whom  he  would  make  a  bishop.  For  what  else  is  the 
bishop  than  the  first  preshyter,  that  is,  the  highest  priest  ? 
For  he  [the  bishop]  calls  them  [the  presbyters]  by  no  other 
name  than  fellow-presbyters  and  fellow-priests.  He  there- 
fore considers  them  of  the  same  grade  as  himself."  But 
he  is  careful  by  no  means  to  do  the  same  with  regard  to 
clerical  persons  of  inferior  rank.  Not  even  with  the 
deacons,  for  to  place  himself  in  the  same  category  with 
them  would  be  degrading  his  own  rank.  "  Does  the  bishop 
call  the  deacons  his  fellow-deacons  ?  Certainly  not;  because 
they  are  far  inferior  to  him,  and  it  were  a  disgrace  to  call 
the  judge  a  mere  manager  of  a  cleric's  office^  If  any  are 
disposed  to  call  in  question  this  interpretation  of  the  phrase, 
judicem  dicere  primicerium,  I  will  only  say  that  it  was 
given  to  me  by  Prof.  Rothe  of  Heidelberg,  with  whose 
name  the  reader  has  already  become  familiar,  by  the  fre- 
quent references  to  his  learned  work  on  the  Origin  of  the 
Christian  Church.  The  following  is  also  his  exposition  of 
the  passage.  "  Where  there  is  a  real  difference  of  office 
and  rank,  the  higher  officer  cannot  include  himself  in  the 
official  designation  of  the  lower,  without  degrading  himself. 
It  would  be  a  downright  insult,  to  address  the  president  of 
a  court  as  the  head  of  his  clerks.    Just  so  it  does  not  enter 

est,  sed  Episcopus  primus  est  5  ut  omnis  Episcopus  Presbyter  sit,  non 
omnis  Presbyter  Episcopus ;  hie  enim  Episcopus  est,  qui  inter  Presbyteros 
primus  est.  Denique  Timotheum  Presbyterum  ordinatum  significat}  sed 
quia  ante  se  alterum  non  habebat,  Episcopus  erat.  Unde  et  quemadmo- 
dum  Episcopum  ordinet  ostendit.  Neque  enim  fas  erat  aut  licebat,  ut 
inferior  ordinaret  maiorem ;  nemo  enim  tribuit  quod  non  accepit. — Com- 
ment in  1  Tim.  3 :  8,  inter  Ambros.  Op.,  Tom.  II,  app.  295. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  181 

the  mind  of  the  bishop  to  call  his  desicoms,  feUotd-(ieaco7is, 

making  himself  thereby  a  deacon.  Between  these  two 
officers  there  exists  an  actual  difference  m  rank.  On  the 
other  hand,  he  calls  the  presbyters  his  fellow-presbyters, 
because  he  sees  no  real  difference  between  his.  office  and 
theirs,  but  only  a  difference  in  degree;  that  is,  he  considers 
himself,  in  relation  to  the  presbyters,  as  only  primus  inter 
pares,  chief  among  equals.  The  offices  of  bishop  and 
presbyter  therefore  are  essentially  one  and  the  same ;  the 
very  thing  which  Ambrosiaster  wishes  to. prove.'  'For  in 
Alexandria  and  throughout  all  Egypt,  upon  the  decease  of 
the  bishop,  the  presbyter  confirms  {consignat) .'  "  87 

Here  the  presbyter  performs  another  of  the  Episcopal 
functions, — by  administering  the  rite,  not  only  of  ordination 
but  of  confirmation fi^ 

The  full  sacerdotal  power  is  possessed  by  every  presby- 
ter, according  to  the  authority  of  the  earliest  fathers.  The 
apostolical  fathers  know  no  distinction  between  bishops 
and  presbyters ;  and  later  ones  make  no  difference  in  their 
order  or  grade  of  rank.  The  distinction  of  bishop  is  only 
a  conventional  arrangement  made  for  mutual  convenience, 
but  in  no  wise  incapacitating  the  presbyter  for  the  perform- 
ance of  any  of  his  sacerdotal  offices.     The  right  to  ordain 

87  Presbyterum  autem   intelligi   Episcopum  probat  Paul  us  Apostolus, 
quando  Timotheum,  quern  ordinavit  Presbyterum  instruit,  qualum  debeat 

•  creare  Episcopum.  Quid  est  enim  Episcopus  nisi  primus  Presbyter,  hoc 
est  summus  sacerdos  ?  Denique  non  aliter  quam  Compresbyteros,  Condia- 
conos  suos  dicit  Episcopus  1  Non  utiquc;  quia  multo  inferiores  sunt,  et 
turpe  est,  iudicem  dicere  primicerium. — Augxistin.Op.,  Tom.  3,  app.,  p.  77. 
Quaestiones  in  Veteris  et  Nov.  Test.,  ex  utroqua  mixtim,  ed.  Bened.  Ant- 
werp, 1700—3. 

88  Whether  the  verb  consignare  expresses  the  confirmation  of  the  bap 
tized,  or  the  imposition  of  hands  upon  those  who  were  ordained,  or  on 
penitents,  it  was  correctly  accomplished  by  presbyters,  in  the  absence  of 
the  bishop,  whose  presence  was  founded  only  on  custom,  and  the  canons 
of  the  church.  But  these  could  not  have  legalized  such  acts  of  the  pres- 
byter had  not  his  authority  been  apostolical.  He  was  there  duly  authorized 
to  perform  the  functions  of  the  Episcopal  office. 

16 


182  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Still  belongs  to  him ;  and  the  bishop,  when  promoted  to  his 
office  to  preside  over  his  fellow-presbyters,  receives  no  new 
consecration  or  ordination,  but  continues  still  himself  to 
ordain  as  a  presbyter. 

Such  is  a  plain  statement  of  this  controverted  point,  and 
such  the  exposition  which  many  Episcopal  writers,  even  at 
the  present  day,  give  of  this  subject.  Give  up  the  delusive 
notion  of  divine  right  and  apostolical  succession,  and  you 
concede  of  course  the  validity  of  presbyterian  ordination. 
Such  Episcopalians  themselves  afford  us  the  ablest  refuta- 
tions of  the  absurdities  and  arrogant  pretensions  of  high- 
church  Episcopacy. 

We  have  next  the  authority  of  Jerome,  who  died  A.  D. 
426.  He  was  one  of  the  most  learned  of  the  Latin  fathers. 
Erasmus  styles  him  "  by  far  the  most  learned  and  most 
eloquent  of  all  the  Christians,  and  the  prince  of  Christian 
divines."  Jerome  received  his  education  at  Rome,  and 
was  familiar  with  the  Eoman,  Greek,  and  Hebrew  lan- 
guages. He  travelled  extensively  in  France  and  the 
adjacent  countries.  He  resided,  in  the  course  of  his  life, 
at  Constantinople,  at  Antioch,  at  Jerusalem,  and  at  Bethle- 
hem. By  his  great  learning,  and  his  extensive  acquaint- 
ance with  all  that  related  to  the  doctrines  and  usages 
both  of  the  Eastern  and  of  the  Western  churches,  he  was 
eminently  qualified  to  explain  the  rights  and  prerogatives 
of  the  priesthood. 

But  does  Jerome  testify  to  the  right  of  presbyters  to 
ordain  ?  "  What  does  a  bishop,"  says  he,  "  ordination 
excepted,  that  a  presbyter  may  not  do?"^^  This,  however, 
is  said  of  the  relations  of  bishop  and  presbyter  as  they  then 
were.  This  restriction  of  the  right  of  ordaining  to  the 
bishops  alone  was  a  modern  innovation,  which  had  begun 

89  Quid  enim  facit,  excepta  ordinatione,  Episcopus,  quod  presbyter  non 
faciat  1—Ep.  ad  Evang.,  Ep.  101  alias  85.  Op.  Ed.  Paris,  1693—1706, 
p.  802. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  183 

to  distinguish  them  from  the  presbyters,  and  to  subvert 
the  original  organization  of  the  church.  But  it  was  an 
acknowledged  fact,  in  his  day,  that  the  bishops  had  no 
authority  from  Christ  or  his  apostles  for  their  unwarrant- 
able assumptions.  "  As  the  presbyters  know  that  it  is  by 
the  custom  of  the  church  that  they  are  subject  to  him  who 
is  placed  over  them,  so  let  the  bishops  know  that  they  are 
above  presbyters  rather  by  the  custom  of  the  church  than 
by  the  fact  of  our  Lord's  appointment,  and  that  they 
(both  bishops  and  presbyters)  ought  to  rule  the  church  in 
common,  in  imitation  of  the  example  of  Moses."  ^o 

He  reviews  the  same  subject  with  great  point  in  his 
famous  epistle  to  Evagrius,  or,  more  properly  in  modern 
editions,  to  Evangelus.  He  rebukes  with  great  severity 
certain  persons  who  had  preferred  deacons  in  honor 
"above  presbyters,  i.  e.,  bishops^  Having  thus  asserted  the 
identity  of  bishops  and  presbyters,  he  goes  on  to  prove  his 
position  from  Phil.  1:1;  from  Acts  20:  17,  28;  from  Titus 
1:5;  from  1  Tim.  4:  14;  and  from  1  Pet.  5:  1.  "Does 
the  testimony  of  these  men  seem  of  small  account  to  you?" 
he  proceeds  to  say,  "  then  clangs  the  gospel  trumpet, — that 
son  of  thunder  whom  Jesus  so  much  loved,  and  who  drank 
at  the  fountain  of  truth  from  the  Saviour's  breast.  '  The 
presbyter  to  the  elect  lady  and  her  children.'  2  John  1:1; 
and  in  another  epistle,  '  The  presbijter  to  the  well-beloved 
Gains.'     3  John  1:  1." 

"  As  to  the  fact,  that  afterwards,  one  was  elected  to 
preside  over  the  rest,  this  was  done  as  a  remedy  against 
schism;  lest  every  one  drawing  his  proselytes  to  himself, 
should  rend  the  church  of  Christ.  For  even  at  Alexan- 
dria, from  the  evangelist  Mark  to  the  bishops  Heraclas 
and  Dionysius,  the  presbyters  always  chose  one  of  their 
number,  placed  him  in  a  superior  station,  and  gave  him 

90  Comment,  in  Epist.  ad  Titus,  c.  1,  v.  5.    Op.,  Tom.  4.    Paris,  1G93— 
170G,  p.  413. 


184  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  title  of  bishop ;  in  the  same  manner  as  if  an  army 
should  MAKE  an  emperor;  or  the  deacons  should  choose 
from  among  themselves  one  whom  they  knew  to  be  par- 
ticularly active,  and  should  call  him  arch-deacon.  For, 
excepting  ordination,  what  is  done  by  a  bishop,  which  may 
not  be  done  by  a  presbyter?  Nor  is  it  to  be  supposed, 
that  the  church  should  be  one  thing  at  Rome,  and  another 
in  all  the  world  besides.  Both  France  and  Britain,  and 
Africa,  and  Persia,  and  the  East,  and  India,  and  all  the 
barbarous  nations  worship  one  Christ,  observe  one  rule  of 
truth.  If  you  demand  authority,  the  globe  is  greater  than 
a  city.  Wherever  a  bishop  shall  be  found,  whether  at 
Rome,  or  Eugubium,  or  Constantinople,  or  Rhegium,  or 
iV.lexandria,  or  Tanis,  he  has  the  same  pretensions,  the 
same  priesthood."  91 

91  Sicut  ergo  Presbyteri  sciunt,  se  ex  Ecclesiae  consuetudine  ei,  qui 
sibi  praepositus  fuerit,  esse  subiectos,  ita  Episcopi  noverint,  se  magis 
consuetudine  quam  dispositionis  Dominicae  veritate  Presbyteris  esse 
maiores,  et  in  commune  debere  Ecclesiam  regere,  imitantes  Moysen,  qui 
cum  haberet  in  potestate  solus  praeesse  populo  Israel,  septuaginta  elegit, 
cum  quibus  populum  iudicaret.  Audio  quendam  in  tantam  erupisse 
vecordiam,  ut  Diaconos  Presbyteris,  id  e§t  Episcopis,  anteferret.  Nam 
cum  Apostolus  perspicue  doceat,  eosdem  esse  Presbyteros  quos  Episco- 
pos,  quid  patitur  mensarum  et  viduaram  minister,  ut  supra  eos  se  tumidus 
efFerat,  ad  quorum  preces  Christi  corpus  sanguisque  conficitur  ?  Quaeris 
auctoritatem  ?  Audi  testimonium.  Paulus  et  Timotheus,  servi  lesu 
Christi,  omnibus  Sanctis  in  Christo  lesu,  qui  sunt  Philippis,  ciim  Epis- 
copis  et  Diaconis.  Vis  et  aliud  exemplum  ?  In  Actibus  Apostolorum 
ad  unius  Ecclesiae  sacerdotes  ita  Paulus  loquitur:  Attendite  vobis  et 
cuncto  gregi,  in  quo  vos  Spiritus  Sa7ictus  posuit  Episcopos,  ut  regeretis 
Ecclesiam  Domini,  quam  acquisivit  sanguine  suo.  Ac  ne  quis  contentiose 
in  una  Ecclesia  plures  Episcopos  fuisse  contendat,  audi  et  aliud  testi- 
monium, in  quo  manifestissime  comprobatur,  eundem  esse  Episcopum 
atque  Presbyterum.  Propter  hoc  reliqui  te  in  Creta,  ut,  quae  deerant, 
corrigeres,  et  constiiueteres  Presbyteros  per  civitates,  sicut  et  ego  tibi 
mundavi.  Si  quis  est  sine  crimine ,  unius  uxoris  vir,filios  habensfideles, 
non  in  accusatione  luxuriae,  aut  non  subditos.  Oportet  enim  Episcopum 
sine  crimine  esse,  quasi  Dei  dispensatorem.  Et  ad  Timotheum :  Noli 
negligere  gratiam,  quae  in  te  est,  quae  tibi  data  est  prophetae,  per  impo- 
sitionem  manuum^  Presbyterii.    Sed  et  Petrus  in  prima  epistola :    Presby- 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  185 

Here  the  presbyters  themselves  elect  one  of  their  num- 
ber and  make  him  a  bishop,  so  that  even  the  bishop  is 
ordained  by  the  presbyters,  if  indeed  it  can  be  called  an 
ordination;  if  not,  then  he  is  only  a  presbyter  still,  having 
no  better  right  to  ordain  than  they  themselves  have. 
Such,  Jerome  assures,  is  the  usage  in  every  country. 
There  was  but  one  ordination  for  bishops  and  presbyters 
in  his  time,  though  bishops  had  now  begun  exclusively  to 
administer  it.  But  we  have  a  stream  of  testimonies  coming 
down  to  us  from  the  time  of  the  apostles,  that  it  had  been 
the  custom  of  the  church  from  the  beginning,  for  bishops 
and  presbyters  to  receive  the  same  ordination.  This  is 
another  consideration  of  much  importance,  to  show  that 
presbyters  were  entitled  to  ordain.  Having  themselves 
received  Episcopal  ordination,  they  were  duly  qualified  to 
administer  the  same. 

But  Jerome  himself  attributes  to  presbyters  the  original 
right  of  ordination.  "  Priests  who  baptize,  and  administer 
the  eucharist,  anoint  with  oil,  impose  hands,  instruct  cate- 
chumens, constitute  Levites  and  others  priests,  have  less 
reason  to  take  offence  at  us,  explaining  these  things,  or  at 

Uros,  inquit,  in  vobis  precor  compresbyter  et  testis  passionum  Christi  et 
futurae  gloriae,  quae  revelanda  est,  particeps,  regere  gregem  Christi,  et 
inspicere  non  ex  necessitate,  sed  voluntarie  iuxta  Deum.  Quod  quidem 
graece  significantius  dicitur  l7nay.07iovi>Teg,  id  est  superintendentes, 
unde  et  nomen  Episcopi  tractum  est.  Parva  tibi  videntur  tantorum  vivorum 
testimonia  ?  Clangat  tuba  evangelica,  filius  tonitrui,  quern  lesus  amavit 
plurimum,  qui  de  pectore  salvatoris  doctrinarum  fluenta  potavit :  Presby- 
ter Electae  Dominae  et  filiis  eius,  qtios  ego  diligo  in  veritate.  Et  in  alia 
epistola :  Presbyter  Caio  Carissimo,  quern  ego  diligo  in  veritate.  Quod 
autem  postea  unus  electus  est,  qui  ceteris  praeponeretur,  in  schismatis 
remedium  factum  est,  ne  unusquisque  ad  se  trahens  Christi  Ecclesiam 
rumperet.  Nam  Alexandriae  a  Marco  Evangelista  usque  ad  Heraclam  et 
Dionysium  Episcopos  Presbyteri  semper  unum  ex  se  electum  in  excelsiori 
gradu  collocatum  Episcopum  nominabant,  quomodo  si  exercitus  Impera- 
torem  faciat,  aut  Diaconi  eligant  de  se  quem  industrium  noverint  et  Archi- 
diaconum  vocent.  Quid  enim  facit  excepta  ordinatione  Episcopus,  quod 
Presbyter  non  faciat  1—Ep.  ad  Evang.,  101  alias  85,  p.  802. 

16^ 


186  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  prophets  foretelling  them,  than  to  ask  of  the  Lord 
forgiveness." 

The  relevancy  of  this  passage  depends  upon  the  ques- 
tion who  are  the  sacerdotes,  priests  of  whom  Jerome  speaks. 
He  is  commenting  upon  Zephaniah  3  :  3.  Her  princes 
within  her,  are  roaring  lions,  by  which  he  understands  her 
priests,  saying,  "  I  am  aware,  that  I  shall  offend  many 
because  I  interpret  these  things  as  said  of  bishops  and 
presbyters."  92  Then,  after  remarking,  at  length,  upon  this 
degenerate  priesthood,  he  adds  the  sentence  above.  Jerome, 
therefore,  ascribes  to  presbyters  and  bishops,  alike,  the 
same  right  to  constitute  "  Levites  and  others  priests,"  ap- 
plying the  terms,  not  to  the  Jewish  priesthood,  but  to  the 
clergy  of  the  Christian  church  in  his  day,  and  including 
both  bishops  and  presbyters  under  the  same  category,  as 
possessing  equal  rights  to  baptize,  to  ordain,  and  to  admin- 
ister the  sacraments. 

That  the  right  of  ordination  belonged  to  presbyters,  is 
evident,  from  the  authority  of  Eutychius,  of  Alexandria, 
which,  also  illustrates  still  farther  the  usage  of  this  church, 
and  confirms  the  testimony  of  Jerome.  The  citation  with 
the  translation  is  from  Goode.  This  author  with  reference 
to  Eutychius  says,  "  His  words  are  these ;  after  mention- 
ing that  Mark  the.  Evangelist  went  and  preached  at  Alex- 
andria, and  appointed  Hananias  the  first  patriarch  there, 
he  adds,  *  Moreover  he  appointed  twelve  presbyters  with 
Hananias,  who  Avere  to  remain  with  the  Patriarch,  so  that, 
when  the  Patriarchate  was  vacant,  they  might  elect  one  of 
the  twelve  presbyters,  upon  whose  head  the  other  eleven 
might  place  their  hands  and  bless  him  [or,  invoke  a  bless- 

92  Scio  offensurum  me  esse  plurimos  quod  super  episcopis  et  presbyteris 
haec  interpreter ....  Sarcerdotes  qui  dant  baptismum  et  ad  eucharistiane 
Domini  uniprecantur  adventum,  faciunt  oleum  chrismatis,  manus  imponunt, 
catechumenos  erudiunt,  Levitas  et  alios  constituunt  sacerdotes,  non  tarn 
indignentur  nobis  haec  exponentibus  et  prophetis  vaticinantibus,  quam 
Dominum  deprecentur. — Tom.  3,  pp.  1672,  1673. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  187 

ing  upon  him],  and  create  him  Patriarch,  and  then  choose 
some  excellent  man  and  appoint  him  presbyter  with  them- 
selves in  the  place  of  him  who  was  thus  made  Patriarch, 
that  thus  there  might  always  be  twelve.  Nor  did  this  cus- 
tom respecting  the  presbyters,  namely,  that  they  should 
create  their  Patriarchs  from  the  twelve  presbyters,  cease  at 
Alexandria  until  the-  times  of  Alexander,  Patriarch  of 
Alexandria,  who  was  of  the  number  of  the  318  [bishops 
at  Nice.]  But  he  forbade  the  presbyters  to  create  the 
Patriarch  for  the  future,  and  decreed  that  when  the  Patri- 
arch was  dead,  the  bishops  should  meet  together  and 
ordain  the  Patriarch.  Moreover  he  decreed  that  on  a 
vacancy  of  the  Patriarchate  they  should  elect,  either  from 
any  part  of  the  country,  or  from  those  twelve  presbyters, 
or  others,  as  circumstances  might  prescribe,  some  excellent 
man  and  create  him  Patriarch.  And  thus  that  ancient 
custom  by  which  the  Patriarch  used  to  be  created  by 
the  presbyters  disappeared,  and  in  its  place  succeeded 
the  ordinance  for  the  creation  of  the  Patriarch  by  the 
bishops.  93 

93  The  following  is  Selden's  translation  of  the  passage  from  the  Arabic  : 
— "  Constituit  item  Marcus  Evang'elista  duodecirti  Presbyteros  cum 
Hanania,  qui  nempe  manerent  cum  Patriarcha,  adeo  ut  cum  vacaret 
Patriarch atus,  eligerent  unum  e  duodecim  Presbyteris  cujus  capiti  reliqui 
undecim  manus  imponerent  eumque  benedicerent  et  Patriarcham  eum 
crearent,  et  dein  virum  aliquem  insignem  eligerent  eumque  Presbyterum 
secum  constitucrent  loco  ejus  qui  sic  factus  est  Patriarcha,  ut  ita  semp6r 
extarent  duodecim.  J*^eque  desiit  Alexandriaj  institutum  hoc  de  Presby- 
teris, ut  scilicet  Patriarchas  crearent  ex  Presbyteris  duodecim,  usque  ad 
tempera  Alexandri  Patriarchse  Alexandrini  qui  fait  ex  numero  illo  cccxviii. 
Is  autem  vetuit  ne  deinceps  Patriarcham  Presbyteri  crearent.  Et  dccrevit 
ut  mortuo  Patriarcha  convenirent  Episcopi  qui  Patriarcham  ordinarent. 
Decrevit  item  ut,  vacante  Patriarchatu,  eligerent  sive  ex  quacunque 
regione,  sive  ex  duodecim  illis  Presbyteris,  sive  aliis,  ut  res  ferebat,  virum 
aliquem  eximium,  eumque  Patriarcham  crearent.  Atque  ita  evanuit 
institutum  illud  antiquius,  quo  creari  solitus  a  Presbyteris  Patriarcha,  et 
successit  in  locum  ejus  decretum  de  Patriarcha  ab  Episcopis  creando." — 
Eutych.  Patr.  Alex.  Ecclesice  suts  orig.  Ed.  J.  Selden.  London,  1642. 
4to.  pp.  29—31. 


188  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

"I  have  given  this  passage  in  full,  because  it  has  been 
sometimes  replied  that  it  referred  only  to  the  election  of 
the  Patriarch,  and  that  we  must  suppose  that  he  was  after- 
wards consecrated  to  his  office  by  bishops.  But  it  is  evi- 
dent to  any  one  who  takes  the  whole  passage  together,  that 
such  an  explanation  is  altogether  inadmissible ;  and  more- 
over, the  very  same  word  (which,  following  Selden,  we 
have  translated  created)  is  used  with  respect  to  the  act  of 
the  presbyters,  as  is  afterwards  used  with  respect  to  the 
act  of  the  bishops  in  the  appointment. 

"  I  am  quite  aware  that  very  considerable  learning  has  been 
employed  in  the  attempt  to  explain  away  this  passage,  and 
the  reader  who  wishes  to  see  how  a  plain  statement  may  thus 
be  darkened,  may  refer  to  the  works  mentioned  below. "^^ 

Gieseler  pertinently  remarks,  in  regard  to  it,  that  "it  is 
at  least  certain  that  the  part  which  is  contradictory  to  the 
usage  of  later  times  has  not  been  interpolated ;  and  so  far 
it  has  an  historical  value."  ^^ 

The  validity  of  presbyterian  ordination,  and  the  right  of 
presbyters  to  ordain,  was  never  called  in  question,  according 
to  Planck,  until  the  bishops  began,  about  the  middle  of  the 
third  century,  to  assert  the  doctrine  of  the  apostolical  suc- 
cession. "With  the  name  it  seemed  desirable  also  to 
inherit  the  authority  of  the  apostles.  For  this  purpose 
they  availed  themselves  of  the  right  of  ordination.  The 
right  of  ordination  of  course  devolved  exclusively  upon 
the  bishops  as  alone  competent  rightly  to  administer  it. 
As  they  had  been  duly  constituted  the  successors  of  the 
apostles,  so  also  had  they  alone  the  right  to  communicate 
the  same  in  part  or  fully,  by  the    imposition  of  hands. 

94  See  Abr.  Echell.  Eutychius  Vindicatus,  Morinus  De  Ordinat.,  Renaudot. 
Hist.  Patriarch  Alex. 

9"  Cited  in  our  Cliristian  Antiquities,  p.  103.  In  addition  to  the  authors 
mentioned  above,  by  Goode,  are  Le  Quien  and  Petavius,  Comp.  also, 
Neander,  Allgem.  Gesch.,  1,  pp.  325,  326,  2d  edit.,  Note.  J.  F.  Rehkopf, 
Vitae  Patriarcharum  Alexandr.  fasc,  1  and  II. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  189 

From  this  time  onward,  to  give  the  rite  more  effect,  it  was 
administered  with  more  imposing  solemnity."  And  in  all 
probability  it  became  customary  at  this  early  period  to  utter 
in  the  laying  on  of  hands,  those  words  of  prelatical  arro- 
gance and  shocking  irreverence,  '  Receive  the  Holy  Ghost ' 
for  the  office  and  work  of  a  bishop.^*^ 

Dr.  Neander  has  assured  the  writer,  in  conversation  on 
this  point,  that  beyond  a-  doubt  presbyters  were  accustomed 
to  ordain  in  the  ages  immediately  succeeding  the  apostles. 
The  testimony  of  Firmilian,  given  above,  is,  according  to 
Neander,  explicit  in  confirmation  of  this  fact,  and  the  same 
sentiments  are  also  expressed  or  implied  in  his  works.  If 
further  evidence  is  needed  on  this  point,  it  is  given  at  length 
and  with  great  ability  by  Blondell,  who,  after  occupying 
one  hundred  quarto  pages  with  the  argument,  sums  up  the 
result  of  the  discussion  with  the  following  syllogism. 

"  To  whom  the  usage  of  the  church  has  assigned,  in 
reality,  the  same  functions,  to  them,  it  has  also  from  the 
beginning  ascribed  the  same  ministerial  parity,  and  of 
course,  the  same  dignity. 

"But  the  usage  of  the  church  has  assigned  to  bishops  and 
presbyters,  in  reality,  the  same  functions  in  the  rites  of 
confirmation,  of  dedication  of  churches,  of  taking  the  veil, 
of  the  reconciling  of  penitents,  and  in  the  ordination  of 
presbyters,  deacons,  &c. 

"  Therefore,  it  has,  from  the  beginning,  declared  that 
bishops  and  presbyters,  are  in  all  respects  equal,  and  of 
necessity,  that  they  are  the  same  in  dignity  or  rank."97 

Even  the  decrees  of  council,  which  restrict  the  right  of 
ordination  to  the  bishops  alone,  distinctly  imply  that  from 
the  beginning  it  was  not  so.  limited.  Why  deny,  by  a 
formal  decree,   to  presbyters  the  right  to  ordain,  if  they 

96  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  pp.  158—161. 

97  Apologia  pro  sententia  Hieronomi  de  Episcopis  et  presbyteris.  Am- 
stelod.,  IGIG^  4to. 


190  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

have  never  enjoyed  that  right?     The    prohibition   is  an 
evident  restriction  of  their  early  prerogatives. 

But  I  forbear;  enough  has  been  said  to  vindicate  the 
right  of  presbyters  to  ordain,  and  to  perform  all  the  func- 
tions of  the  ministerial  office.  Indeed,  I  cannot  but  wonder 
that  it  should  ever  have  been  called  in  question.  How 
extraordinary  the  hardihood  with  which,  in  the  face  of 
authorities  a  thousand  times  collated  and  repeated,  we  are 
still  told  that  "  the  idea  of  ordination,  by  any  but  bishops 
was  an  unheard-of  thing  in  the  primitive  church. "^8 
Whereas  the  burden  of  proof  really  rests  upon  them  who 
venture  upon  such  assertions.  This  idea  is  forcibly  pre- 
sented by  Dr.  Miller,  in  the  following  extract,  with  which 
we  close  this  review  of  the  authority  of  the  fathers  on  the 
point  now  under  consideration. 

"The  friends  of  prelacy  have  often,  and  with  much  ap- 
parent confidence,  challenged  us  to  produce  out  of  all  the 
early  fathers,  a  single  instance  of  an  ordination  performed 
by  presbyters.  Those  who  give  this  challenge  might  surely 
be  expected,  in  all  decency  and  justice,  to  have  a  case  of 
Episcopal  ordination  ready  to  be  brought  forward,  from  the 
same  venerable  records.  But  have  they  ever  produced 
such  a  case  ?  They  have  not.  Nor  can  they  produce  it. 
As  there  is,  unquestionably,  no  instance  mentioned  in 
Scripture  of  any  person,  with  the  title  of  bishop,  performing 
an  ordination ;  so  it  is  equally  certain  that  no  such  instance 
has  yet  been  found  in  any  Christian  writer  within  the  first 
two  centu7'ies.  Nor  can  a  single  instance  be  produced  of  a 
person,  already  ordained  as  a  presbyter,  receiving  a  new 
and  second  ordination  as  bishop.  To  find  a  precedent 
favorable  to  their  doctrine,  the  advocates  of  Episcopacy 

98  "  So  much  for  the  idea  of  any  but  bishops  ordaining  in  the  primitive 
church.  Never  was  this  allowed  before  the  Reformation ;  either  in  the 
church,  or  by  any  sect  however  wild  I  " — Review  of  Coleman's  Christian 
Antiquities,  by  H.  W.  D.,  a  presbyter  in  Philadelphia. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  191 

have  been  under  the  necessity  of  wandering  into  periods 
when  the  simplicity  of  the  gospel  had,  in  a  considerable 
degree,  given  place  to  the  devices  of  men ;  and  when  the 
man  of  sin  had  commenced  that  system  of  unhallowed 
usurpation,  which  for  so  many  centuries  corrupted  and 
degraded  the  church  of  God. 

"  Such  is  the  result  of  the  appeal  to  the  early  fathers. 
They  are  so  far  from  giving  even  a  semblance  of  support 
to  the  Episcopal  claim,  that,  like  the  Scriptures,  they  every 
where  speak  a  language  wholly  inconsistent  with  it,  and 
favorable  only  to  the  doctrine  of  ministerial  parity.  What 
then  shall  we  say  of  the  assertions  so  often  and  so  con- 
fidently made,  that  the  doctrine  of  a  superior  order  of 
bishops  has  been  maintained  in  the  church,  '  from  the 
earliest  ages,'  in  'the  ages  immediately  succeeding  the 
apostles,'  and  '  by  all  the  fathers  from  the  beginning  ? ' 
What  shall  we  say  of  the  assertion,  that  the  Scriptures, 
interpreted  by  the  writings  of  the  early  fathers,  decidedly 
support  the  same  doctrine  ?  I  will  only  say,  that  those 
who  find  themselves  able  to  justify  such  assertions,  must 
have  been  much  more  successful  in  discovering  early 
authorities  in  aid  of  their  cause,  than  the  most  diligent, 
learned,  and  keen-sighted  of  their  predecessors. "^^ 

We  have  even  high  Episcopal  authority  for  presbyterian 
ordination.  Repugnant  as  this  view  of  ordination  is  to 
the  modern  advocates  of  Episcopacy,  the  sentiments  of 
Archbishop  Cranmer,  and  the  first  protestant  bishops  of  the 
church  of  England,  were  not  widely  different.  The  follow- 
ing extract  from  a  highly  interesting  document  contains 
the  answer  of  the  venerable  prelate  himself,  to  certain 
questions  propounded  to  a  select  assembly  at  Windsor 
Castle,  in  the  reign  of  Edward  the  sixth. 

"  A  bishop  may  make  a  priest  by  the  Scriptures,  and  so 

99  Miller's  Letters,  pp.  108, 109. 


192  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

may  princes  and  governors  alsoe,  and  that  by  the  auctority 
of  God  committed  to  them,  and  the  people  alsoe  by  their 
election.  For  as  we  reade  that  bishops  have  done  it,  so 
Christian  emperors  and  princes  usually  have  done  it.  And 
the  people  before  Christian  princes  were,  commonly  did 
elect  their  bishops  and  priests.  In  the  New  Testament,  he 
that  is  appointed  to  be  a  bishop  or  a  priest,  needeth  no 
consecration  by  the  Scripture ;  for  election  or  appointing 
thereto  is  sufficient."  i*^^  • 

A  volume  might  be  filled  with  authorities  from  the  Eng- 
lish church  alone,  in  which  both  her  most  distinguished 
prelates  and  her  most  eminent  scholars  concede  to  presby- 
ters a  virtual  equality  with  bishops,  and  a  right  to  ordain. 

The  Necessary  Erudition  of  a  Christian  Man,  drawn 
up  with  great  care,  approved  by  both  houses  of  Parliament 
in  1543,  and  prefaced  by  an  epistle  from  the  king  himself, 
declares,  that  "  priests  [presbyters]  and  bishops  are,  by 
God's  law,  one  and  the  •  same ;  and  that  the  powers  of 
ordination  and  excommunication  belong  equally  to  both." 
Under  Elizabeth  it  was  enacted  by  parliament,  "  that  the 
ordination  of  foreign  churches  should  be  held  valid." 

The  learned  Whittaker,  of  Cambridge,  declares  the 
doctrine  of  the  reformers  to  be,  that  "presbyters;,  being 
by  divine  right  the  same  as  bishops,  they  might  warranta- 
bly  set  other  presbyters  over  the  churches^ 

Archbishop  Usher,  one  of  the  brightest  ornaments  of  the 
Episcopal  church,  on  being  asked  by  Charles  I,  in  the  Isle 

100  See  transcript  of  the  whole  of  the  original,  which  was  subscribed 
with  Cranmer's  own  hand,  in  Bishop  Stillingfleet's  Irenicum,  Part  II,  c.  7, 
§  2.  See,  also,  Burnet's  History  of  the  Reformation,  P.  1,  pp.  318,  321. 
Cited  from  Conder's  Nonconformity.  Many  other  authorities  from  Eng- 
lish writers  are  given  in  S.  Mather's  Apology  for  the  Liberty  of  the 
Churches,  Chap.  2,  p.  51.  They  have  also  been  collected,  and  collated 
with  great  industry  and  research,  by  Rev.  Dr.  Smyth,  in  his  Apostolical 
Succession,  and  his  Presbytery  not  Prelacy.  So,  also,  in  an  article  in  the 
Christian  Spectator,  JNew  Series,  Vol.  II,  p.  720,  from  whence  several  of 
the  authorities  given  below  are  taken. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  193 

of  Wight,  whether  he  found  in  antiquity  that  ''presbyters 
alone  did  ordain  ?  "  answered,  "  ijes,''  and  that  he  would 
show  his  Majesty  more  —  even  where  presbyters  alone  suc- 
cessively ordained  bishops  ;  and  brought  us  an  instance  of 
this,  the  presbyters  of  Alexandria  choosing  and  making 
their  own  bishop,  from  the  days  of  Mark  till  Heraclas  and 
Dionysius. 

Bishop  Stillingfleet  says,  "  It  is  acknowledged  by  the 
stoutest  champions  of  Episcopacy,  before  these  late  un- 
happy divisions,  that  ordination  performed  by  presbyters  in 
case  of  necessity  is  valid." 

Bishop  Forbes.  "  Presbyters  have  by  divine  right  the 
power  of  ordaining  as  well  as  of  preaching  and  baptizing." 

Sir  Peter  King,  Lord  Chancellor  of  England,  after  as- 
serting the  equality  of  bishops  and  presbyters,  and  showing 
at  length,  that  the  latter  had  full  authority  to  administer 
the  ordinances,  adds,  "  As  for  ordination,  I  find  clearer 
proofs  of  presbyters  ordaining^  than  of  their  administering 
the  Lord's  supper." 

The  first  reformers,  under  the  reign  of  King  Edward 
according  to  Neal,  in  his  history  of  the  Puritans,  "  believed 
but  two  orders  of  churchmen,  in  holy  Scripture — bishops 
and  deacons ;  and,  consequentl)^  that  bishops  and  priests 
[presbyters]  were  but  different  ranks  or  degrees  of  the 
same  order."  Acting  in  this  principle,  "they  gave  the 
right  hand  of  fellowship  to  foreign  churches,  and  to  min- 
isters who  had  not  been  ordained  by  bishops." 

Even  at  the  present  time  the  validity  of  presbyterian 
ordination  is  acknowledged  by  many  in  the  Episcopal 
church.  Not  twenty  years  since,  one  of  the  principal 
conductors  of  the  Christian  Observer  said  to  an  American 
gentleman,  "  I  have  not  for  ten  years  seen  the  man  who 
was  so  utterly  foolish,  as  to  claim  any  exclusive  divine 
right  for  our  ordination,  or  ordinances ;  or  who  hesitated 
to  acknowledge  other  communions  as  churches  of  Christ.'' 
17 


194  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

And  Goode  also,  who  has  written  from  Cambridge,  with 
great  ability  against  the  Tractarians,  says:  —  "I  admit  that 
for  the  latter  point  [ordination  by  bishops  alone,  as  suc- 
cessors of  the  apostles],  there  is  not  any  Scripture  proof; 
but  we  shall  find  here,  as  in  other  cases,  that  as  the  proof 
is  not  to  be  found  in  Scripture,  so  antiquity  also  is  divided 
with  respect  to  it;  and  moreover,  that  though  it  is  the 
doctrine  of  our  church,  yet  that  it  is  held  by  her  with  an 
allowance  for  those  who  may  differ  from  her  on  the  point, 
and  not  as  if  the  observance  of  it  was  requisite  by  divine 
command,  and  essential  to  the  validity  of  all  ordinations ; 
though,  for  the  preservation  of  the  full  ecclesiastical  regu- 
larity of  her  own  orders,  she  has  made  it  essential  to  the 
ministers  of  her  own  communion." i^i  In  support  of  this 
opinion  he  proceeds  to  enumerate  many  of  the  authorities 
of  the  fathers  given  above. 

Finally,  we  add  the  following  extract,  not  again  an 
"  irreverent  dissenter,"  in  the  flippant  cant  of  one  of  the 
Tractarians,  but  a  devoted  son  of  their  own  church,  a  dis- 
tinguished layman  of  England,  who  has  written  with  great 
ability  and  good  effect,  against  the  doctrines  of  Puseyism 
and  High  Church. 

"It  is  no  part  of  my  plan  to  trace  the  origin  or  course 
of  departure  from  the  system  of  church  government  in  the 
apostolical  times,  as  it  lies  before  us  in  all  its  simplicity. 
I  admit — indeed,  as  the  lawyers  say,  it  is  a  part  of  my 
case — that  some  change  was  unavoidable;  and  I  see  noth- 
ing in  the  present  constitution  of  the  church  of  England 
that  is  inconsistent  with  the  principle  of  the  apostles.  But 
to  say  that  they  are  identical,  is  a  mere  abuse  of  words. 
Still  less  is  it  to  be  heard  say  without  some  impatience, 
that  there  is  safety  in  her  communion  only  as  she  has 
descended  from  the  apostles,  through  all  the  changes  and 
abominations  that  have  intervened. "i^^ 


101 


Divine  Rule,  Vol.  II,  pp.  57,  58.    102  Bowdler's  Letters,  pp.  32,  33. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  195 

After  going  through  with  a  sketch  of  the  historical 
argument  in  defence  of  his  sentiments  and  citing  many  of 
the  authorities  given  above,  he  proceeds: — "I  am  aware 
that  in  St.  Jerome's  time  there  existed  generally,  though 
by  no  means  universally,  this  difference  between  the  bishop 
and  the  presbyters,  viz.,  that  to  the  former  was  then  confided 
the  power  of  ordination.  The  transition  from  perfect 
equality  to  absolute  superiority  was  not  suddenly  effected : 
it  was  the  growth  of  time ;  not  of  years,  but  of  centuries ; 
the  distinction  of  authority  or  office  preceding  that  of  order 
or  degree  in  the  church,  and  being  introductory  to  it.  With 
the  former  I  have  no  concern,  it  being  sufficient  to  show, 
that  as  a  distinct  and  superior  order  in  the  church.  Episco- 
pacy, in  the  modern  acceptation  of  the  term,  did  not  exist 
in  the  time  of  the  apostles ;  and  that,  however  expedient 
and  desirable  such  an  institution  might  be,  it  cannot  plead 
the  sanction  of  apostolic  appointment  or  example.  It  may 
be  difficult  to  fix  the  period  exactly  when  the  Episcopate 
Avas  first  recognized  as  a  distinct  order  in  the  church,  and 
when  the  consecration  of  bishops,  as  such,  came  to  be  in 
general  use.  Clearly  not,  I  think,  when  St.  Jerome  wrote. 
Thus  much  at  least  is  certain,  viz.,  that  the  government  of 
each  church,  including  the  ordination  of  ministers^  was 
at  first  in  the  hands  of  the  presbytery  :  that  when  one  of 
that  body  was  raised  to  the  office  of  president,  and  on 
whom  the  title  of  bishop  was  conferred,  it  was  simply  by 
the  election  (co-optatio)  of  the  other  presbyters,  whose  ap- 
pointment was  final,  requiring  no  confirmation  or  consecra- 
tion at  the  hands  of  any  other  prelates  ;  and  that  each 
church  was  essentially  independent  of  every  other. 

"  If  then  all  this  be  so,  there  seems  to  be  an  end  to  the 
question ;  for  under  whatever  circumstances  the  privilege 
of  ordaining  was  afterwards  committed  to  the  bishop,  he 
could  of  necessity  receive  no  more  than  it  was  in  their 
power  to  bestow,  from  whom  he  received  it,  who  were  co- 


196  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ordinate  presbyters,  not  superiors.  At  whatever  period, 
therefore,  it  was  adopted,  and  with  whatever  uniformity  it 
might  be  continued,  and  whatever  of  value  or  even  authority 
it  might  hence  acquire  ;  still  as  an  apostolical  institution  it 
has  none:  there  is  a  gap  which  can  never  be  filled;  or 
rather,  the  link  by  which  the  whole  must  be  suspended  is 
wanting,  and  can  never  be  supplied.  There  can  be  no 
apostolical  succession  of  that  which  had  no  apostolical 
existence ;  whereas  the  averment  to  be  of  any  avail  must 
be,  not  only  that  it  existed  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  but 
was  so  appointed  by  them  as  that  there  can  be  no  true 
church  without  it."i03 

The  right  of  presbyters,  then,  to  ordain,  is  admitted  by 
moderate  Episcopalians  even  at  the  present  time.i^^  It  was 
maintained  by  the  reformers  generally,  both  in  England, 
and  on  the  continent,  and  was  their  undoubted  prerogative 
in  the  early  ages  of  the  Christian  church. 

To  sum  up  all  that  has  been  said — if  presbyters  and 
bishops  are  known  by  the  same  names — if  they  are  re- 
quired to  possess  the  same  qualifications,  and  if  they  do 
actually  discharge  the  same  duties,  then  what  higher  evi- 
dence can  we  expect  or  desire  of  their  equality  and  identity? 
This  course  of  argumentation  is  precisely  similar  to  that 
by  which  orthodoxy  asserts  and  defends  the  supreme  di- 
vinity of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  his  equality  with  the 
Father.  And  none  perhaps  more  readily  admit  the  validity 
of  this  mode  of  argumentation,  on  this  cardinal  principle  in 
the  Christian  system,  than  the  members  of  the  Episcopal 
communion.  What  is  the  argument  for  this  oneness  of 
Christ  with  the  Father  ?  Simply  that  he  is  called  by  the 
names,  that  he  possesses  the  attributes,  that  he  receives  the 
honors  and  performs  the  works  of  the  Father ;  and,  there - 

103  Bowdler's  Letters,  pp.  48—50. 

104  Comp.  Whateley's  Kingdom  of  Christ,  pp.  151,  212. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  197 

fore,  is  one  with  Him.  If,  then,  this  course  of  reasoning 
commands  our  assent  in  these  profound  mysteries,  why 
not  much  more  in  the  case  under  consideration?  We  con- 
fidently rest,  therefore,  in  the  conclusion  of  the  learned  Dr. 
Wilson,  that  "whatever  misconstructions  of  the  presbyterial 
office  may  have  obtained,  it  is  and  always  will  be,  the  highest 
ordinary  office  in  the  Christian  church ;  and  no  presbyter, 
who  is  officially  such,  can  be  less  than  a  bishop,  and 
authorized  to  instruct,  govern,  and  administer,  and  ordain, 
at  least  in  conjunction  with  his  co-presbyters  of  the  same 
presbytery  and  council." 

4.  Bishops  themselves,  in  their  ministerial  character, 
exercised  only  the  jurisdiction,  and  performed  merely  the 
offices,  of  presbyters  in  the  primitive  church. 

For  the  sake  of  argument,  let  us  admit  "that  this  office 
of  bishop  is  disclosed  to  us  in  the  Christian  church  in  the 
very  earliest  records  of  history.  Within  ten  years  after 
the  death  of  St.  John,  we  find  that  the  three  orders  of 
ministers  we^e  actually  denominated  bishop,  priest  and 
deacon ;  and  to  each  was  assigned  the  same  office,  together 
with  nearly  the  same  power  and  duty  as  appertain  to  them 
at  the  present  day.  Hear  how  Ignatius  speaks  to  the 
Philadelphians;  "Attend  to  the  bishop,  and  to  the  presbytery, 
and  to  the  deacons."  i^^  Such  is  the  evident "  exultation 
with  which  Episcopalians  appeal  to  Ignatius.  It  is  clear 
beyond  a  doubt,  that  this  writer  does  speak  of  bishops, 
presbyters  and  deacons;  and  that,  in  strains  almost  of 
profane  adulation,  he  seeks  to  exalt  the  authority  both  of 
bishops  and  presbyters.  But  the  learned  need  hardly  to 
be  reminded  that  suspicion  rests  upon  all  these  epistles 
of  Ignatius.  Many,  both  in  this  country  and  in  Europe, 
who  are  most  competent  to  decide  upon  their  merits,  have 
pronounced  them  undoubted  forgeries.     No  confidence  can 

105  Bishop  De  Lancey's  Faithful  Bishop.    Boston^  1843,  p.  17. 
17* 


198  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

be  placed  upon  them  as  historical  authority.  Whether 
they  really  belong  to  the  second,  third  or  fourth  century, 
is  altogether  uncertain.  They  have  been  often  and  care- 
fully canvassed  by  eminent  scholars,  both  in  America  and 
in  Europe.  Professor  Norton  declares  them  to  be  un- 
doubted forgeries.  Eothe  has  written  with  surpassing 
ability  a  defence  of  them.  But  the  most  probable  conjec- 
ture, and  the  one  most  generally  received,  is,  that  they  are 
filled  with  interpolations  from  various  hands,  and  of  differ- 
ent dates.  Such  is  Dr.  Neander's  opinion,  as  stated  to  the 
writer  in  conversation  upon  them. 

The  great  Milton,  after  exposing  the  absurdities,  corrup- 
tions and  anachronisms  of  these  epistles,  proceeds  to  say, 
"  These,  and  other  like  passages,  in  abundance  through  all 
those  short  epistles,  must  either  be  adulterate,  or  else 
Ignatius  was  not  Ignatius,  nor  a  martyr,  but  most  adulterate 
and  corrupt  himself.  In  the  midst,  therefore,  of  so  many 
forgeries,  where  shall  we  fix  to  dare  say  this  is  Ignatius  ? 
As  for  his  style,  who  knows  it,  so  disfigured  and  interrupted 
as  it  is,  except  they  think  that  where  they  meet  with  any 
thing  sound  and  orthodoxal,  there  they  find  Ignatius  ?  And 
then  they  believe  him,  not  for  his  own  authority,  but  for  a 
truth's  sake,  which  they  derive  from  elsewhere.  To  what 
end  then  should  they  cite  him  as  authentic  for  Episcopacy, 
when  they  cannot  know  what  is  authentic  in  him,  but  by 
the  judgment  which  they  brought  with  them,  and  not  by 
any  judgment  which  they  might  safely  learn  from  him? 
How  can  they  bring  satisfaction  from  such  an  author,  to 
whose  very  essence  the  reader  must  be  fain  to  contribute 
his  own  understanding  ?  Had  God  ever  intended  that  we 
should  have  sought  any  part  of  useful  instruction  from 
Ignatius,  doubtless  he  would  not  have  so  ill  provided  for 
our  knowledge,  as  to  send  him  to  our  hands  in  this  broken 
and  disjointed  plight;  and  if  he  intended  no  such  thing, 
we   do   injuriously  in   thinking  to  taste   better   the  pure 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  199 

evangelic  manna  by  seasoning  our  mouths  with  the  tainted 
scraps  and  fragments  of  an  unknown  table,  and  searching 
among  the  verminous  and  polluted  rags  dropped  overworn 
from  the  toiling  shoulders  of  time,  with  these  deformedly 
to  quilt  and  interlace  the  entire,  the  spotless  and  undecay- 
ing  robe  of  truth,  the  daughter,  not  of  time,  but  of  heaven, 
only  bred  up  here  below  in  Christian  hearts  between  two 
grave  and  holy  nurses,  the  doctrine  and  discipline  of  the 
gospel."  106 

But  we  will  suppose  these  epistles  to  be  the  genuine 
productions  of  Ignatius,  and  that  he  himself  is  one  of  those 
"  apostolic  men  who  drank  in  Christianity  from  the  living 
lips  of  the  apostles  themselves."  Grant  it  all.  What  then? 
Do  not  these  epistles  testify  explicitly,  clearly,  fully,  "  to 
this  superiority  of  bishops  in  government  and  ordination 
over  presbyters  and  deacons?"  Not  in  the  least.  What, 
we  ask,  was  the  diocese  of  these  bishops  of  Ignatius's  epis- 
tles? Nothing  but  single  parishes.  What  were  these  ven- 
erable bishops  themselves  ?  Nothing  more  than  the  pastors 
of  a  single  congregation.  They  were  merely  parish  minis- 
ters, parochial  bishops;  and,  though  bearing  the  name  of 
bishop,  they  were  as  unlike  a  modern  diocesan  as  can 
well  be  imagined.  This  fact  deserves  a  careful  considera- 
tion. Let  us  not  deceive  ourselves  with  a  name,  a  title. 
We  are  not  inquiring  after  names,  but  things.  Because 
we  read  of  primitive  bishops  in  the  early  church,  must 
we  suppose  that  each,  of  necessity,  had  the  superiority, 
or  enjoyed  the  proud  distinction  of  the  modern  dignitary 
of  the  church  who  bears  the  same  title  ?  The  name 
determines  nothing  in  regard  to  the  official  rank  and 
duties  of  a  primitive  bishop.  Give  to  a  congregational 
or  presbyterian  minister  this  title,  and  you  have  made  him 
truly  a  primitive  bishop.  These  ancient  dignitaries,  down 
to  the  third   century,  and  in  many  instances,  even  later, 

106  Milton's  Prelatical  Episcopacy.    Prose  Works,  Vol.  I,  pp.  79,  80. 


200  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

exercised  no  wider  jurisdiction,  and  performed  no  higher 
offices,  than  a  modern  presbyter,  or  any  pastor  of  a  single 
parish  or  congregation. 

In  support  of  the  foregoing  representation,  we  have  to 
offer  the  following  considerations  : 

{a)  By  all  primitive  writers,  the  bishop's  charge  is 
denominated  invariably  a  church,  a  congregation;  never 
in  the  plural,  churches  or  congregations. 

{h)  It  is  admitted  by  Episcopalians  themselves,  that 
the  diocese  of  a  primitive  -bishop  comprised  only  a  single 
church. 

(c)  The  Christians  under  the  charge  of  these  ancient 
bishops,  all  were  accustomed  to  meet  in  one  place,  like  the 
people  of  a  modern  parish  or  congregation. 

{d)  All  under  his  charge  were,  in  many  instances,  as 
familiarly  known  unto  their  bishop  himself,  as  the  people 
of  a. parish  to  their  pastor. 

(e)  So  many  bishops  are  found  in  a  single  territory,  of 
limited  extent,  that  no  one  could  have  exercised  a  jurisdic- 
tion beyond  the  bounds  of  a  single  parish. 

(/)  The  charge  of  a  primitive  bishop  is  known,  in 
many  instances,  not  to  have  equalled  that  of  a  modern 
presbyter  or  pastor. 

[a)  By  all  primitive  writers,  the  bishop's  charge  is  de- 
nominated invariably  a  church,^  congregation;  never  in 
the  plural,  churches  or  congregations. 

The  cure  of  a  primitive  bishop  is  never,  in  a  single 
instance,  represented  to  comprise  several  congregations,  like 
that  of  a  modern  diocesan;  but  always  is  restricted  to  a 
single  body  of  Christians,  denominated  a  church.  As  the 
epistles  of  Paul  the  apostle  are  addressed  to  the  church 
at  Rome,  at  Corinth,  at  Ephesus,  &c.,  so  those  of  the 
apostolical  fathers,   Clement,  Polycarp   and   Ignatius   are 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    TRESBYTERS.  201 

addressed,  in  like  manner,  to  a  single  church — to  the 
church  at  Corinth,  at  Philippi,  at  Ephesus,  at  Smyrna,  &c. 
Neither  is  the  word  church  ever  used  by  the  early  fathers 
in  a  generic  sense,  for  a  national  or  provincial  church,  as 
we  speak  of  the  church  of  England,  or  of  Scotland.  The 
fact  is  so  indisputable,  that  no  time  need  be  wasted  in 
proof  of  it.  But  it  is  worthy  of  particular  attention,  as 
illustrative  of  the  nature  of  a  bishop's  office.  It  presents 
his  duties  and  his  office  in  total  contrast  with  those  which 
prelacy  assigns  to  bishops.  It  reveals  the  primitive  bishop 
to  us  merely  as  a  parish  minister. 

"  Now  as  one  bishop  is  invariably  considered,  in  the 
most  ancient  usage,  as  having  only  one  sy.xXi]aia,  it  is  mani- 
fest that  his  inspection  at  first  was  only  over  one  parish. 
Indeed,  the  words  congregation  and  parish  are,  if  not 
synonymous,  predicable  of  each  other.  The  former  term 
relates  more  properly  to  the  people  as  actually  congregated, 
the  other  relates  to  the  extent  of  ground  which  the  dwelling 
houses  of  the  members  of  one  congregation  occupy.  Ac- 
cordingly, the  territory  to  which  the  bishop's  charge  ex- 
tended, was  always  named,  in  the  period  I  am  speaking 
of,  in  Greek  nagotxla,  in  Latin  parochia,  or  rather  parcecia, 
which  answers  to  the  English  word  pai'ish,  and  means 
properly  a  neighborhood."!^^ 

In  the  sense  above  stated,  the  word  in  question  is  said 
to  be  used  at  least  six  hundred  times  in  the  writings  of 
Eusebius  alone.  Such  continued  to  be  the  bishop's  charge 
down  to  the  fourth  century. 

(b)  It  is  admitted  by  Episcopalians  themselves,  that 
the  diocese  of  a  primitive  bishop  comprised  only  a  single 
church. 

On   this   point   the    authority  of  the    late    Dr.   Burton, 

iw  Campbell's  Lectures,  pp.  106,  107. 


202  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

regius  professor  at  Oxford,  is  equally  explicit  and  unex- 
ceptionable. In  his  history  of  the  church  at  the  beginning 
of  the  second  century,  he  says: — "The  term  diocese  was 
not  then  known ;  though  there  may  have  been  instances 
where  the  care  of  more  than  one  congregation  was 
committed  to  a  single  bishop,  of  which  we  have  a  very 
early  example  in  all  the  Cretan  churches  being  en- 
trusted by  Paul  to  Titus.  The  name  which  was  gener- 
ally applied  to  the  flock  of  a  single  pastor,  was  one 
from  which  our  present  word  parish  is  derived,  which 
signified  his  superintendence  over  the  inhabitants  oi  a  par- 
ticular place.  "^^^ 

Again,  at  the  commencement  of  the  third  century, 
"The  term  diocese,  as  has  been  observed  in  a  former  chap- 
ter, was  of  later  introduction,  and.  was  borrowed  by  the 
church  from  the  civil  constitution  of  the  empire.  At  the 
period  which  we  are  now  considering,  a  bishop's  diocese 
was  more  analogous  to  a  modern  parish,  and  such  was  the 
name  which  it  bore.  Each  parish  had,  therefore,  its  own 
bishop,  with  a  varying  number  of  presbyters,  or  priests 
and  deacons."  1^9 

"  As  for  the  word  diocese,  by  which  the  bishop's  flock  is 
now  expressed,  I  do  not  remember,  that  ever  I  found  it 
used  in  this  sense  by  any  of  the  ancients.  But  there  is 
another  word  still  retained  by  us,  by  which  they  frequently 
denominated  the  bishop's  cure;  and  that  is  'parish,'''' '^^^ 
Every  bishop  had  but  one  congregation  or  church.  This 
is  a  remark  which  deserves  your  particular  notice ;  as  it 
regards  an  essential  point  in  the  constitution  of  the  primi- 
tive church,  a  point  which  is  generally  admitted  by  those 
who  can  make  any  pretensions  to  the  knowledge  of  Christian 
antiquities. .  .  .  Now  as  one  bishop  is  invariably  considered 

108  History  of  the  Christian  Church'  p.  179.         i09  ibid.,  pp.  263,  264. 
"0  King's  Primitive  Church,  p.  15. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  203 

in  the  most  ancient  usage  as  havings  only  one  fxxXj^a/a, 
churchy  it  is  manifest  that  his  inspection,  at  first,  was 
only  one  parish." m  Instead,  therefore,  of  presiding  over 
myriads'  of  his  fellow-men  with  authority,  which  even 
princes  might  envy,  this  your  ancient  bishop  was  nothing 
more  than  a  humble  parish  minister,  having  the  charge  of 
some  little  flock  over  whom  he  had  been  duly  appointed  an 
overseer  in  the  service  of  the  chief  Shepherd. 

(c)  The  Christians,  under  the  charge  of  these  ancient 
bishops,  all  were  accustomed  to  meet  in  one  place,  like  the 
people  of  a  modern  parish  or  congregation. 

This  is  incontrovertibly  evident  from  the  fathers  of  the 
second,  and  even  of  the  third  century,  such  as  the  writings 
of  Ignatius,!  12  Justin  Martyr,  Irenaeus,  Tertullian  and 
Cyprian.  "  Now,  from  the  writings  of  those  fathers,  it  is 
evident  that  the  whole  flock  assembled  in  the  same  place. 
Ini  t6  duT6,  with  their  bishop  and  presbyters,  as  on  other 
occasions,  so  in  particular,  every  Lord's-day,  or  every 
Sunday,  as  it  was  commonly  called,  for  the  purposes  of 
public  worship,  hearing  the  Scriptures  read,  and  receiving 
spiritual  exhortations.  The  perseverance  in  this  prac- 
tice is  warmly  recommended  by  the  ancients,  and  urged 
on  all  the  Christian  brethren,  from  the  consideration  of  the 
propriety  there  is,  that  those  of  the  same  church  and  parish, 
and  under  the  same  bishop,  should  all  join  in  one  prayer 
and  one  supplication,  as  people  who  have  one  mind  and 
one  hope.  For,  it  is  argued,  '  if  the  prayer  of  one  or  two 
have  great  efficacy,  how  much  more  efficacious  must  that 
be  which  is  made  by  the  bishop  and  the  whole  church. 
He,  therefore,  who  doth  not  assemble  with  him  is  denomi- 

"1  Campbell's  Lectures,  pp.  105,  106. 

"2  For  a  purpose  like  the  present,  we  may  safely  appeal  to  Ignatius;  for 
though  the  work  may  be  reasoniibly  suspected  to  have  been  interpolated 
to  aggrandize  the  Episcopal  order,  it  was  never  suspected  of  any  interpola- 
tion with  a  view  to  lessen  it. 


204  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

nated  proud  and  self-condemned.'  ^^  Again,  as  there  was 
but  one  place  of  meeting-,  so  there  was  but  one  communion 
table  or  altar,  as  they  sometimes  metaphorically  called  it. 
'  There  is  but  one  altar,'  said  Ignatius,  '  for  there  is  but  one 
bishop;' 11"*  and  accordingly,  one  place  of  worship.  To  this 
may  be  added  the  authority  of  Slillingfleet.  "  For  although 
when  the  churches  increased,  the  occasional  meetings  were 
frequent  in  several  places,  yet  still  there  was  but  one 
church,  and  one  altar,  and  one  baptistry,  and  one  bishop, 
with  many  presbyters  assisting  him ;  and  this  is  so  very 
plain  in  antiquity,  as  to  the  churches  planted  by  the  apos- 
tles themselves  in  several  parts,  that  none  but  a  stranger  to 
the  history  of  the  church  can  ever  call  it  in  question."  ii^ 

We  have  here  another  illustration  of  the  parochial 
Episcopacy,  which,  in  the  ancient  church,  restricted  the 
labors  of  the  minister  of  Christ  to  a  single  church  and 
congregation. 

{d)  All  under  his  charge  were,  in  some  instances,  as 
familiarly  known  unto  their  bishop  himself,  as  are  the 
people  of  a  parish  to  their  pastor. 

Polycarp,  for  example,  bishop  of  Smyrna,  is  exhorted  by 
Ignatius  to  know  all  of  his  church  by  name,  even  the  men- 
servants  and  maid-servants ;  to  take  care  of  the  widows 
within  his  diocese ;  to  take  cognizance  personally  of  all 
marriages;  and  to  suffer  nothing  to  escape  his  notice. ^^^ 

^^^  El  yuQ  svbg  y.al  devTsgs  Tcgoasv/ri  TOGa^n]v  \ay-{)v  s/st, 
ndcra  fiakXov  7\  is  t5  IniUKons  xal  7idar]g  ixxXi^aiag ;  'O  dv 
fir]  ig/dfisvog  snl  to  adro.  xal  kavibv  diixgivev. — £p.adEph.,c.5. 

114  ^'Ep  ducriagqQiov  &g  elg  Inignonog.  Ep.  ad  Phil.,  c.  8.  Camp- 
bell's Lectures,  p.  109. 

115  Stillingfleet,  Serm.  against  Separat,  p.  27,  cited  by  Clarkson,  p.  17. 
^^^  'Ft,  oi'diiarog  ndviag  t'/]T£fc.      ^hlag  xal  diXag  firi  vnegrj- 

q)&VEr  Xrigav  /ifri  dfiEleladojaav.  JJqetiei  ds  loTg  ya}.isoi  xal 
zaXg  Yafi8fJSvaig,fiETa  yv(i)fJ7]g  ra  IniaKons  lijv  ev(x)aiv  noielaOat. 
Mrjdkv  dvev  yvojfirjg  08  ytveaOoj. — Ignatius  ad  Polycarp,  c.  4,  5. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  205 

All  this  evidently  requires  of  the  bishop  a  personal 
acquaintance  with  the  people  of  his  charge,  even  more 
familiar,  and  a  personal  supervision  over  them  more  minute, 
than  that  of  the  pastor  of  a  single  parish  in  any  of  our 
cities.  Even  the  bishop  of  Tyre  had  a  diocese  so  small 
that  he  had  a  personal  knowledge  of  the  Christians  within 
it.ii'^  Carthage,  again,  was  one  of  the  largest  cities  in  the 
world ;  and  yet  Cyprian,  the  bishop  of  that  city,  made  it  a 
duty  to  have  a  familiar  acquaintance  with  all  his  people, 
and  to  provide  for  the  needy  and  destitute  among  them.ii^ 
To  such  primitive  Episcopacy  as  this  who  can  object  ? 

(e)  So  maiiy  bishops  are  found  in  a  single  territory  of 
limited  extent,  that  no  one  could  have  exercised  jurisdiction 
beyond  the  bounds  of  a  single  parish. 

Take,  for  example,  a  single  province,  that  of  Africa;  and 
in  doing  this,  I  am  happy  to  avail  myself  of  the  inquiries  of 
another.  "  The  testimony  of  Du  Pin  on  this  point,  himself 
a  prelatist,  is  invaluable.  He  describes,  in  the  first  place, 
the  ancient  province  of  Africa,  as  nearly  commensurate 
with  the  modern  Barbary  States,  and  then  proceeds  to 
remark  as  follows : 

"  'All  this  tract,  both  before  and  after  the  subjection  of 
the  Romans,  contained  an  almost  countless  number  of 
people.  There  were  found  cities,  towns,  boroughs,  mili- 
tary stations  {castellis),  and  villages,  both  of  natives  and 
colonists,  in  great  number ;  and,  by  the  fertility  of  the  soil^ 
and  abundance  of  its  produce,  as  well  as  by  mercantile, 
trade,  it  became  very  wealthy.     Hence  we  find  so  great  a 

117  Schoene,  Geschichtsforschungen,  III,  p.  336. 

118  Cumque  ego  vos  pro  me  vicarios  miserim  ut  expungeretis  necessi- 
tates fratrum  nostrorum  sumptibus,  si  qui  vellent  suas  artes  exercere,. 
additamento  quantum  satis  esset  desideria  eorum  juvaretis,  simul  etiam 
et  aetates  eorum  et  conditiones  et  merita  discerneretisj  ut  etiam  nunc 
ego,  cui  cura  incumbit  omnes  optime  nosse  et  dignos  quosque,  et  humiles  et 
mites  ad  ecclesiasticae  administrationis  officia  promoverem, — Ep.  38,  p.  51. 

18 


206  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

multitude  of  Christians  in  these  regions,  to  govern  whom 
were  appointed  very  many  bishops,  far  more  numerous, 
indeed,  and  nearer  together,  than  in  some  other  parts  of 
the  Christian  world.  For  in  these  parts  it  was  customary 
to  appoint  bishops  not  only  in  great  cities,  but  in  villages, 
or  villas,  and  in  small  cities  {in  vicis  aut  villis  et  in  modicis 
civitatibus) ;  which  was  guarded  against  by  the  57th  canon 
of  the  Council  of  Laodicea,  and  the  7th  canon  of  that  of 
Sardica.  But  that  rule  obtained,  not  in  Africa,  where  it  is 
on  record  that  bishops  were  ordained  not  only  in  great 
cities,  but  in  all  the  towns  {i7i  cunctis  oppidis),  and  not 
unfrequently  in  villages  and  military  stations  {in  vicis  et 
castellis) ;  which  multitude  of  bishops'  sees,  that  had  sprung 
up,  even  from  the  very  first  rise  of  the  African  churches, 
was  increased  by  the  emulation  of  the  Catholics  and 
Donatists.'  ii9 

"  Such  are  the  statements  of  one  of  the  learned  historians, 
one  whose  judgment  is  universally  respected.  Such,  too, 
must  be  the  convictions  of  every  one  who  makes  himself 
acquainted  with  the  surviving  documents  of  the  African 
churches.  Let  any  one  turn  over  the  pages  of  the  Minutes 
of  the  Conference  {gesta  collationis)  between  the  Catholics 
and  Donatists  at  Carthage,  in  A.  D.  411,  at  which  565 
bishops  were  present,  and  he  must  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  Mons.  Du  Pin  has  told  the  truth. 

"  So  strong  is  the  evidence  from  this  quarter,  that  Bing- 
ham is  constrained  to  admit,  that  '  during  the  time  of  the 
schism  of  the  Donatists,  many  new  bishoprics  were  erected 
in  very  small  towns  in  Africa ;  as  appears  from  the  acts  of 
the  Collation  of  Carthage,  where  the  Catholics  and  Dona- 
tists mutually  charge  each  other  with  the  practice;  that 
they  divided   single   bishoprics    sometimes   into  three   or 

119  Du  Pin's  Sacred  Geography  of  Africa,  prefixed  to  his  edition  of  "The 
Seven  Books  of  St.  Optatus'  bishop  of  Mileve  in  Africa/'  on  the  schism  of 
the  Donatists,  published  at  Paris,  A.  D.  1700,  p.  57. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOrS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  207 

four;   and  made  bishops  in  country  towns  and  villages,  to 
augment  the  numbers  of  their  parties.'  ^^^ 

"  It  will  be  observed,  that  this  practice  was  pursued  as 
well  by  the  Orthodox  as  their  opponents.  Wherever  a 
few  people  could  be  gathered  together,  they  organized 
them  into  a  church,  and  placed  a  bishop  over  them.  And 
when  that  church  became  very  numerous  they  divided  it 
again  (except  in  the  great  cities),  just  as  we  are  accus- 
tomed to  do  at  the  present  day.  There  was  nothing  in  the 
idea  of  a  church,  or  of  a  bishop,  that  forbade  this  practice. 
Nay,  it  was  provided  for  by  an  ecclesiastical  law  of  the 
province.  The  fifth  canon  of  the  second  council  of  Car- 
thage (A.  D.  390)  provides,  that  '  if,  in  the  course  of  time, 
as  religion  prospers,  any  people  of  God  should  be  so  multi- 
plied as  to  desire  to  have  a  rector  of  their  own,  they  should 
have  a  bishop,  in  case  they  obtained  the  consent  of  him  to 
whose  authority  the  diocese  was  subject.' 

"  Du  Pin  says,  '  We  have  drawn  out  of  ancient  docu- . 
ments  the  names  of  six  hundred  and  ninety  bishoprics  in 
Africa.' 121     He  annexes  a  catalogue  of  their  names,  and 
refers  in  every  instance  to  the   document  or  documents 

120  Bingham's  Antiq.  of  Christ.  Church,  B.  2,  c.  12,  §  3. 

121  Geog.  Sac.  Africae,  p.  59.  Shoene  says,  Geschiclitsforschungen,  Vol. 
Ill,  335,  that  in  the  time  of  Augustine  there  were  nine  hundred  bishops  in 
Africa.  The  number  is  evidently  made  out  in  tlie  following  manner. 
Augustine,  in  his  minutes  of  the  first  day's  conference  between  the  Catho- 
lics and  Donatists,  says,  that  of  the  Catholics,  286  answered  to  their  names, 
20  subscribed  not,  120  were  absent,  detained  by  reason  of  their  age,  infirm- 
ity, or  other  causes  ;  and  that  60  of  their  bishoprics  were  vacant,  making  a 
total  of  426  bishops  and  486  bishoprics. 

Of  the  Donatists,  279  were  present,  many  more  than  120  were  absent, 
and  many  of  their  bishoprics  were  vacant. — Opera,  Tom.  9,  p.  374,  F.  375, 
376,  A.  Antwerp,  1700. 

Augustine  also  states,  that  the  Maximinianists  were  condemned  by  a 
council  of  310  of  the  Donatists.  Contra  Parmenian,  Lib.  1,  Tom.  9,  c. 
18,  p.  15,  B.  Contra  Crescon.  Don.,  Lib.  3,  c.  52,  p.  315,  E.  Lib.  4,  c.  7, 
p.  331,  D.  The  Donatists,  moreover,  themselves  boasted  that  they  had 
more  than  400  bishops  in  Africa.  Post.  Coll.,  c.  24,  p.  411,  D.  In  addition 
to  all  these,  the  Maximinianists  afford  another  legion  of  bishops  in  this 


208  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

where  they  are  found.  With  reason,  therefore,  he  says, 
'  there  is  not  one  of  these  that  has  not  at  some  time  a  bish- 
op, as  may  be  gathered  from  ecclesiastical  documents.'  "122 

(/)  The  charge  of  a  primitive  bishop  is  known  in  many 
instances  not  to  have  equalled  that  of  a  modern  presbyter 
or  pastor. 

Bishops  were  found  in  villages  and  military  stations  in 
Africa,  as  we  have  just  seen.  Ischyrus  was  made  bishop 
of  a  very  small  village,  containing  but  few  inhabitants.  1^3 
Paul,  one  of  the  famous  council  of  Nice,  was  only  bishop 
of  a  fort,  cpQovQiov,  near  the  river  Euphrates. ^^^  Eulogius 
and  Barses,  monks  of  Edessa,  had  each  no  city,  but  only  a 
monastery  for  a  diocese ;  or  rather  it  was  merely  an  hono- 
rary title,  an  empty  name,  without  any  charge  connected 
with  it.i25  Others,  again,  were  bishops  of  cities  where 
there  were  no  Christians  whatever,  but  some  few  in  the 
country  round  about. 1^6 

The  council  of  Sardica,  c.  7,  and  of  Laodicea,  c.  57,  in 
the  fourth  century,  denounced  the  custom  of  ordaining 
bishops  "  in  villages  and  small  cities,  lest  the  authority  of  a 
bishop  should  be  brought  into  contempt."  But  a  hundred 
years  later,  the  custom  still  prevailed  to  a  considerable  ex- 


same  province,  100  or  more  of  whom  condemned  Priminianus.  Contra 
Crescon.  Don.,  Lib.  4,  c.  6,  p.  331,  D.  Post.  Coll.,  c.  30.  We  are  now 
prepared  to  make  up  the  roll  of  African  bishops.  Catholics,  426,  Donatists, 
400,  ]Maximinianists,  100.  Total,  926,— to  say  nothing  of  vacant  sees.  In 
such  astonishing  profusion  are  these  dioceses,  these  Episcopal  sees,  scat- 
tered broad-cast  over  the  single  province  of  Africa. 

122  New  York  Evangelist,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  182.     1843. 

^^^  Kcoiiir]  §qaxvTa.irj,  zal  olh/ojv  a.i'dq{ano)V.—Athans.  ApoL,  2, 
T.  1,  p.  200. 

124  Theodoret,  Eccl,  Hist.,  Lib.  1,  c.  6. 

^2^''0i  aal  iTTiaxoTiu)  aucpo)  vaTSoov  eyevidi/v,  6v  noleojg  xivbi 
hlla  Tiiirig  u'sxsv  .  .  .  %eiQOzor7jd8VTeg  iv  jotg  idioig  fiovaaii]- 
^[oig.—Sozomen,  Eccl.  Hist,  Lib.  6,  c.  34,  p.  691. 

126  Shoene,  Geschichtsforschungen,  III,  p.  336. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  209 

tent.'  Even  Gregory,  one  of  the  most  learned  and. eloquent 
men'  of  his  age,  worthy  to  have  been  "  a  professor  of  elo- 
quence," after  having  studied  in  Gaesarea,  in  Alexandria, 
and  at  Athens,  was,  in  the  last  half  of  the  fourth  century, 
bishop,  first  of  Zazime,  "a  dismal"  place;  and  afterwards 
of  Nazianzum,  noleojg  Ivrelovg,  vilis  oppidl,  an  inferior 
place. 127  Even  in  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century,  diocesan 
Episcopacy  was  but  partially  established.  In  some  coun- 
tries, "  there  were  bishops  over  many  cities,"  but  in  others, 
they  were  still  "  consecrated  in  villages,"  y^oijuaigA^^ 

But  I  need  not  enlarge.  If  any  one  wishes  for  further 
information  on  this  point,  he  has  only  to  refer  to  Clarkson 
on  Primitive  Episcopacy,  an  antiquated  work,  evincing  a 
remarkable  familiarity  with  the  records  of  antiquity,  from 
which  a  collection  of  facts,  innumerable  almost,  has  been 
brought  together,  all  tending  to  show  that  the  bishop  of  the 
primitive  church  had  a  charge  no  greater  than  any  curate, 
or  presbyter,  or  parish  minister. 

Grant  then  to  prelacy  all  her  claims.  Run  back  her 
unbroken  succession  up  to  these  days  of  primitive  sim- 
plicity, and  she  leads  you  up,  not  to  an  Episcopal  palace, 
but  to  the  cottage,  the  cell,  it  may  be,  of  an  obscure  curate. 
The  modern  bishop  has  only  deceived  himself  with  a 
name.  While  he  reads  of  ancient  bishops,  he  idly  dreams 
of  Episcopal  powers  and  prerogatives  unknown  in  the 
church  until  the  days  of  Constantino  the  Great. 

It  is  a  sophism,  often  played  off  with  effect,  deceiving 
the  simple  and  the  wise,  to  surround  an  ancient  and  vene- 
rable name  with  modern  associations.  So  delusive  are 
our  comparisons  of  that  which  is  unknown  with  what 
is  known ;  so  deceptive  our  judgment  of  the  past  by  the 
present.  Tityrus,  the  poet's  simple  swain,  foolishly  thought 
Rome  herself  just  such  another  as  his  own  Mantua,  where 

127  Socrates,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  4,  c.  26,  p.  242. 
12S  Sozomen,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  7,  c.  19,  p.  734. 

18^ 


210  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  shepherds  were  wont  to  drive  out  their  tender  lambs. 
So  he  had  seen  whelps,  like  dogs ;  so  kids,  like  goats. 
Thus  he  was  wont  to  compare  great  things  with  small. 
But  what  was  his  surprise  to  see  that  imperial  .city  rearing 
her  head  as  high  above  others  as  the  cypress  rises  above 
the  limber  shrubs. i^a  He  had  deceived  himself  by  his 
false  comparisons.  The  same  deception  one  practises 
upon  himself  by  bringing  a  modern  into  comparison  with 
a  primitive  bishop.  But,  on  examination,  the  delusion 
vanishes.  The  far-spreading  domains  of  the  diocesan, 
which  had  charmed  his  fancy,  shrink  into  a  little  hamlet ; 
the  proud  Episcopal  palace  becomes  a  poor  parsonage ;  and 
the  lofty  prelate,  a  humble  presbyter,  the  pastor  of  a  little  flock. 

The  bearings  of  this  view  of  the  subject  upon  prelacy 
are  obvious. 

1.  It  annuls  the  virtue  of  Episcopal  ordination. 

The  relations  of  the  foregoing  view  to  the  validity  of 
Episcopal  ordination  exclusively,  are  clearly  set  forth  in  the 
following  passage  from  Clarkson,  himself  an  Episcopalian: 

"  Hereby,  also,  some  mistakes  about  Episcopal  ordina- 
tions, of  ill  consequence,  may  be  rectified.  A  bishop,  in 
the  best  ages  of  Christianity,  was  no  other  than  the  pastor 
of  a  single  church.  A  pastor  of  a  single  congregation  is 
now  as  truly  a  bishop.  They  were  duly  ordained  in  those 
ages,  who  were  set  apart  for  the  work  of  the  ministry  by 
the  pastor  of  a  single  church,  with  the  concurrence  of  some 
assistants.  Why  they  should  not  be  esteemed  to  be  duly 
ordained,  who  are  accordingly  set  apart  by  a  pastor  of  a 

129  Urbem  quam  dicunt  Romane,  Moeliboee,  putavi 

Stultus,  ego  huic  nostrae  similem,  qua  saepe  solemus 

Pastores  ovium  teneros  depellere  foetus. 

Sic  canibus  catulos  similes,  sic  matribus  haedos 

Noram ;  sic  parvis  componere  magna  solebam. 

Verum  haec  tantiim  alias  inter  caput  extulit  urbes, 

Quantum  lenta  solent  inter  viburna  cupressi, —  Virgil,  Buc,  1. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOrS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  211 

single  church  now,  I  can  discern  no  reason,  after  I  have 
looked  every  way  for  it.  Let  something  be  assigned  wliich 
will  make  an  essential  difference  herein ;  otherwise  they 
that  judge  such  ordhiatioiis  here,  and  in  other  reformed 
churches,  to  be  nullities,  will  hereby  declare  all  the  ordina- 
tions in  the  ancient  church  for  three  or  four  hundred  years, 
to  be  null  and  void,  and  must  own  the  dismal  consequences 
that  ensue  thereof.  They  that  will  have  no  ordinations 
but  such  as  are  performed  by  one  who  has  many  churches 
under  him,  maintain  a  novelty  never  known  nor  dreamt  of 
in  the  ancient  churches,  while  their  state  was  tolerable. 
They  may  as  well  say  the  ancient  church  had  never  a 
bishop  (if  their  interest  did  not  hinder,  all  the  reason  they 
make  use  of  in  this  case  would  lead  them  to  it),  as  deny 
that  a  reformed  pastor  has  no  power  to  ordain,  because  he 
is  not  a  bishop.  He  has  Episcopal  ordination,  even  such 
as  the  canons  require,  being  set  apart  by  two  or  three 
pastors  at  least,  who  are  as  truly  diocesans  as  the  ancient 
bishops,  for  some  whole  ages."  ^^^ 

2.  It  exposes  also  the  futility  of  the  doctrine  of  apostoli- 
cal succession. 

"  The  theory  is,  that  each  bishop,  from  the  apostolic 
times,  has  received  in  his  consecration  a  mysterious  '  gift,' 
and  also  transmits  to  every  priest  in  his  ordination  a 
mysterious  'gift,'  indicated  in  the  respective  offices  by 
the  awful  Avords,  'Receive  the  Holy  Ghost;'  that  on  this 
the  right  of  priests  to  assume  their  functions,  and  the  pre- 
ternatural grace  of  the  sacraments  administered  by  them, 
depends ;  that  bishops,  once  consecrated,  instantly  become 
a  sort  of  Leyden  jar  of  spiritual  electricity,  and  are  invested 
with  the  remarkable  property  of  transmitting  the  'gift'  to 
others;  that  this  has  been  the  case  from  the  primitive 
age  till  now;   that  this  high  gift  has  been  incorruptibly- 

130  Primitive  Episcopacy,  pp.  182, 183.    London,  1G88. 


212  THE   PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

transmitted  through  the  hands  of  impure,  profligate,  hereti- 
cal ecclesiastics,  as  ignorant  and  flagitious  as  any  of  their 
lay  contemporaries ;  that,  in  fact,  these  *  gifts '  are  perfectly 
irrespective  of  the  moral  character  and  qualifications  both 
of  bishop  and  priest,  and  reside  in  equal  integrity  in  a 
Bonner  or  a  Cranmer, — a  parson  Adams  or  a  parson  Trul- 
liber."i3i 

Now,  we  ask,  have  these  countless  multitudes  of  bishops 
all  been  episcopally  ordained,  scattered  through  the  earth, 
as  they  were,  from  Britain  to  the  remotest  Indies;  in  cities, 
towns,  villages,  forts,  military  stations,  monasteries,  and 
what  not?  Can  these  mysterious  'gifts'  and  graces  be  so 
diffused  abroad  over  the  earth,  and  bandied  about  from 
hand  to  hand,  without  the  hazard,  amidst  a  thousand  con- 
tingencies, that  they  may  have  fallen  away,  or  lost  their 
ethereal  power?  Has  no  graceless  hypocrite  crept  in 
unawares  among  the  Lord's  anointed,  and,  with  unholy 
hands,  essayed  these  awful  mysteries,  transmitting,  by 
uncanonized  rites,  this  heavenly  grace?  Has  no  link  been 
broken  in  this  mysterious  chain,  stretching  onward  from 
the  distant  age  of  the  apostles  down  to  the  present  ?  Has 
no  irregularity  disturbed  the  succession,  no  taint  of  heresy 
marred  the  purity  of  its  descent  ?     Believe  it  who  can.i^s 

131  Edinburgh  Rev.,  April,  1843,  pp.  269,  270. 

132  i(  We  can  imagine  the  perplexity  of  a  presbyter  thus  cast  in  doubt  as  to 
whether  or  not  he  has  ever  had  the  invaluable  '  gift '  of  apostolical  succes- 
sion conferred  upon  him.  As  that  'gift'  is  neither  tangible  nor  visible,  the 
subject  neither  of  experience  nor  consciousness; — as  it  cannot  be  known 
by  any  'effects'  produced  by  it  (for  that  mysterious  efficacy  which  attends 
the  administration  of  rites  at  its  possessor's  hands,  is,  like  the  gift  which 
qualifies  him  to  administer  them,  also  invisible  and  intangible), — he  may 
imagine,  unhappy  man !  that  he  has  been  '  regenerating '  infants  by  baptism, 
when  he  has  been  simply  sprinkling  them  with  water.  'What  is  the  mat- 
ter V  the  spectator  of  his  distractions  might  ask.  '  What  have  you  lost  V 
*  Lost !'  would  be  the  reply ;  '  I  fear  I  have  lost  my  apostolical  succession, 
or  rather,  my  misery  is,  that  I  do  not  know  and  cannot  tell  whether  I  ever 
had  it  to  lose!'  It  is  of  no  use  here  to  suggest  the  usual  questions,  'When 
did  you  see  it  last  1    When  were  you  last  conscious  of  possessing  it  V 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  213 

3.  It  is  fatal  to  the  claims  of  the  "  one  catholic  and  apos- 
tolic church  "  of  high  Episcopacy. 

This  holy  catholic  church,  one  and  indivisible,  deriving 
divine  rights  in  regular  succession  from  the  apostles, — 
where,  or  what  is  it  ?  Who  this  house  of  Aaron,  that  have 
kept,  all  the  while,  the  sacred  fire  of  the  altar,  borne  up 
and  defended  the  tabernacle  of  the  Lord,  and  guarded  thus 
from  all  profane  intrusion  the  ark  of  the  covenant  ?  This 
royal  priesthood,  these  that  were,  at  first,  created,  and  have 
always  continued,  wholly  a  right  seed, — who,  or  what  are 
they?  What  form  of  error,  we  seriously  ask,  what  species 
of  delusion,  what  tribe  of  schismatics,  what  creature  of  sin, 
has  not,  at  some  time,  found  a  place  within  this  same 
immaculate  church,  as  a  component  part  of  this  strange 
Episcopal  unity, — a  unity  only  of  chaos  and  infinite  con- 
fusion? The  whole  system  of  high,  exclusive  Episcopacy 
is  itself  any  thing  but  a  semblance  of  that  apostolic  church 
to  which  it  so  proudly  clings.  In  its  doctrines,  in  its 
government,  and  in  all  the  trumpery  of  its  canons  and  its 
traditions,  what  has  it  now  in  common  with  the  church,  as 
she  was  in  the  days  of  the  apostles  ?  This  "  one,  holy, 
catholic,  and  apostolic  church"  of  prelacy, — like  the  famous 
ship  of  ancient  Grecian  story,  which,  by  continued  decay 
and  repairs,  came  to  be  so  changed  at  last  that  nothing  of 

What  a  peculiar  property  is  that,  of  which,  though  so  invaluable, — nay,  on 
which  the  whole  efficacy  of  the  Christian  ministry  depends, — a  man  has 
no  positive  evidence  to  show  whether  he  ever  had  it  or  not!  which,  if  ever 
conferred,  was  conferred  without  his  knowledge  ;  and  which,  if  it  could  be 
taken  away,  would  still  leave  him  ignorant,  not  only  when,  where,  and  how 
the  theft  was  committed,  but  whether  it  had  ever  been  committed  or  not  I 
The  sympathizing  ft-iend  might,  probably,  remind  him,  that  as  he  was  not 
sure  he  had  ever  had  it,  so,  perhaps,  he  still  had  it  without  knowing  it. 
*  Perhaps!'  he  would  reply  3  'but  it  is  certainty  I  want.'  '  Well,'  it  might 
be  said,  'Mr.  Gladstone  assures  you,  that,  on  the  most  moderate  computa- 
tion, your  chances  are  as  8000  to  1  that  you  have  it !'  '  Pish !'  the  distracted 
man  would  exclaim,  '  what  does  Mr.  Gladstone  know  about  the  matter  V 
And,  truly,  to  that  query  we  know  not  well  what  answer  the  friend  could 
make." — Edinburgh  Rev.,  p.  271. 


214  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  original  remained, — she  has,  indeed,  still  the  same 
name  ;  but  all  else,  how  changed  !  One  by  one,  her  every 
part  has  gone  to  decay,  and  given  place  to  something  else. 
And  there  she  lies  now  at  her  moorings,  with  scarce  a 
beam,  or  plank,  or  fragment  of  her  shrouds  remaining  from 
the  original  and  noble  frame-work  of  her  great  Master- 
builder  ;  and  yet  proudly  claiming  still  an  exclusive  right 
to  the  honored  name  which  she  so  much  dishonors.  This 
"  catholic,  apostolic  church," — pray,  in  what  consists  her 
identity  with  the  church  of  the  holy  apostles  ? 

"  A  real,  living  unity,  and  a  well  regulated  liberty,''^  says 
Riddle,  "characterized  the  early  constitution  of  the  church. 
But  liberty  was  afterwards  sacrificed  to  unity;  and  this 
unity  itself  degenerated  into  a  merely  external,  forced,  and 
dead  union,— which,  became  subservient  to  the  purposes  .of 
oppression,  and  to  the  growth  of  the  hierarchy." 

4.  The  original  equality  Of  bishops  and  presbyters  con- 
tinued to  be  acknowledged,  from  the  rise  of  the  Episcopal 
hierarchy  down  to  the  time  of  the  Reformation. 

The  claims  of  prelatical  Episcopacy  were  attacked  in  the 
fifth  century  with  great  spirit  by  Jerome,  who  denies  the 
superiority  of  bishops,  giving  at  the  same  time  an  explana- 
tion of  the  origin  of  this  groundless  distinction,  widely 
difTerent  from  that  of  divine  right  by  apostolical  authority. 
Several  passages  from  this  author  have  already  been  given 
under  another  head,  to  which  we  subjoin  the  following, 
with  a  translation,  and  an  analysis  by  Dr.  Mason. 

"  Thus  he  lays  down  doctrine  and  fact  relative  to  the 
government  of  the  church,  in  his  commentary  on  Titus  1:  5. 

"  That  thou  shouldest  ordain  presbyters  in  every  city,  as  I 
had  appointed  thee^"^^     '  What  sort  of  presbyters  ought  to 

133  u  Qui  qualis  Presbyter  debeat  ordinari,  in  consequentibus  disserens  . 
hoc  ait:    Si  qui  est  sine  crimine,  unius  uxoris  vir,"  et  caetera :  postea 
intulit,  "Oportet.  n.  Episcopum  sine  crimine  esse,  tanquam  Dei  dispensa- 
torem."    Idem  est  ergo  Presbyter^  qui  et  Episcopus,  et  antequam  diaboli 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  215 

be  ordained  he  shows  afterwards.  If  any  he  blameless,  the 
husband  of  one  wife,  &;c.,  and  then  adds, /or  a  bishop  must 
be  blameless,  as  the  steward  of  God,  &c.  A  presbijter,  there- 
fore, is  the  same  as  a  bishop:  and  before  there  were,  by  the 
.  instigation  of  the  devil,  parties  in  religion ;  and  it  was  said 
among  different  people,  I  am  of  Paul,  and  I  of  Apollos,  and 
I  of  Cephas,  the  churches  were  governed  by  the  joint  coim- 
sel  of  the  presbyters.  But  afterivards,  when  every  one 
accounted  those  whom  he  baptized  as  belonging  to  himself 
and  not  to  Christ,  it  was  decreed  throughout  the  whole  loorld 
that  one,  chosen  from  among  the  presbyters,  should  be  put 

instinctu,  studia  in  religione  fierent,  et  diceretur  in  populis  :  ''  Ego  sum 
Pauli,  ego  Apollo,  ego  autem  Cephac  :"  communi  Presbyterorum  cpnsilio 
ecclesiae  gubernabantur.     Postquam  vero  unusquisque  eos,  quos  baptiza- 
verat,  suos  putabat  esse,  non  Christi :  in  toto  orbe  decretum  est,  ut  unus  de 
Presbyteris  electus  superponeretur  caeteris,  ad  quern  omnis  ecclesiae  cura 
pertineret,  et  schismatum  semina  tollerentur.     Putet  aliquis  non  scriptu- 
rarum,  sed  nostram,  esse  sententiam  Episcopum  et  Presbyterum  unum 
esse  5  et  aliud  aetatis,  aliud  esse  nomen  officii:  relegat  Apostoli  ad  Philip- 
penses  verba  dicentis  :  Paulus  et  Timotheus  servi  Jesu  Christi,  omnibus 
Sanctis  in  Christo  Jesu,  qui  sunt  Philippis,  cum  Episcopis  et  Diaconis, 
gratia  vobis  et  pax,  et  reliqua.    Pliilippi  una  est  urbs  Macedoniae,  et  certe 
in  una  civitate  plures  ut  nuncupantur,  Episcopi  esse  non  poterant.     Sed 
quia  eosdem  Episcopos  illo  tempore  quos  et  Presbyteros  appellabant,  prop- 
terea  indifferenter  do  Episcopis  quasi  de  Presbyteris  est  locutus.     Adhuc 
hoc  alicui  videatur  ambiguum,  nisi  altero  testimonio   comprobetur.     In 
Actibus  Apostolorum  scriptum  est,  quod  cum  venisset  Apostolus  Miletum, 
miserit  Ephesum,   et  vocaverit   Presbyteros   ecclesiae   ejusdem,  quibus 
postea  inter  caetera  sit  locutus :  attendite  vobis  et  omni  gregi  in  quo  vos 
Spiritus  Sanctris  posuit  Episcopos,  pascere  Ecclesiam  Domini,  quam  ac- 
quisivit  per  sanguinem  suum.     Et  hoc  diligentius  observate,  quo  modo 
unius    civitatis    Ephesi   Presbyteros  vocans,   postea    eosdem    Episcopos 
dixerit. — Haec   propterea,  ut   ostenderemus  apud  veteres  eosdem  fuisse 
Presbyteros  quos  et  Episcopos.    Paulatim  vero,  ut  dissensionum  plantaria, 
evellerentur,  ad  unum  omnem  solicitudinem  esse  delatam. — Sicut  ergo 
Presbyteri  sciunt  se  ex  ecclesiae  consuetudine  ei,  qui  sibi  propositus  fuerit, 
esse  subjectos,  ita  Episcopi  noverint  se  magis  consuetudine  quam  dispo- 
sitionis  dominicae  veritate,  Presbyteris  esse  majores,  Hieronymi  Com:  in 
Tit.,  1.  1.  Opp.,  Tom.  4,  p.  413,  ed.  Paris,  1693—1706.    The  same  may  be 
found  in  Rothe,  p.  209. 


216  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

over  the  rest,  and  that  the  whole  care  of  the  church  should 
be  committed  to  him,  and  the  seeds  of  schism  taken  away. 

"  '  Should  any  one  think  that  this  is  only  my  own  private 
opinion,  and  not  the  doctrine  of  the  Scriptures,  let  him 
read  the  words  of  the  apostle  in  his  epistle  to  the  Philip- 
pians:  "Paul  and  Timotheus,  the  servants  of  Jesus  Christ, 
to  all  the  saints  in  Christ  Jesus,  which  are  at  Philippi,  with 
the  bishops  and  deacons,"  &c.  Philippi,  is  a  smgle  city  of 
Macedonia;  and  certainly  in  one  city  there  could  not  be 
several  hishops  as  they  are  now  styled ;  but  as  they,  at  that 
time,  called  the  very  same  persons  bishops  whom  they 
called  presbyters,  the  apostle  has  spoken  without  distinc- 
tion of  bishops  as  presbyters. 

"  '  Should  this  matter  yet  appear  doubtful  to  any  one, 
unless  it  be  proved  by  an  additional  testimony,  it  is  written 
in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  that  when  Paul  had  come  to 
Miletum,  he  sent  to  Ephesus  and  called  the  presbyters  of 
that  church,  and  among  other  things  said  to  them,  "  Take 
heed  to  yourselves  and  to  all  the  flock  in  which  the  Holy 
Spirit  hath  made  you  bishops."  Take  particular  notice, 
that  calling  the  presbyters  of  the  single  city  of  Ephesus, 
he  afterwards  names  the  same  persons  bishops.'  After 
further  quotations  from  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  and 
from  Peter,  he  proceeds  :  '  Our  intention  in  these  remarks 
is  to  show,  that,  among  the  ancients,  preshyters  and  bishops 
were  the  very  same.  But  that  by  little  and  little,  that 
the  plants  of  dissension  might  be  plucked  up,  the  whole 
concern  was  devolved  upon  an  individual.  As  the  pres- 
byters, therefore,  know  that  they  are  subjected,  by  the 
CUSTOM  OF  the  CHURCH,  to  him  who  is  set  over  them,  so  let 
the  bishops  know  that  they  are  greater  than  presbyters, 
more  by  custom  than  by  any  real  appointment  of 
Christ.'  "134 

134  Mason's  Works,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  225—228. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  217 

Again :  with  the  ancients,  bishops  and  presbyters  may 
have  been  one  and  the  same,  because  the  one  denotes 
dignity  in  office,  the  other,  superiority  in  age.^^s 

"  Here  is  an  account  of  the  origin  and  progress  of  Epis- 
copacy by  a  father  whom  the  Episcopahans  themselves 
admit  to  have  been  the  most  able  and  learned  man  of  his 
age ;  and  how  contradictory  it  is  to  their  own  account  the 
reader  will  be  at  no  loss  to  perceive,  when  he  shall  have 
followed  us  through  an  analysis  of  its  several  parts. 

"1.  Jerome  expressly  denies  the  superiority  of  bishops 
to  presbyters,  by  divine  right.  To  prove  his  assertion  on 
this  head,  he  goes  directly  to  the  Scriptures;  and  argues, 
as  the  advocates  of  parity  do,  from  the  interchangeable 
titles  of  bishop  and  presbyter ;  from  the  directions  given  to 
them  without  the  least  intimation  of  difference  in  their 
authority;  and  from  the  'powers  of  presbyters,  undisputed 
in  his  day. 

"2.  Jerome  states  it  as  ?i  historical  fact,  that  this  govern- 
ment of  the  churches  hy  yresbyters  alone,  continued  until, 
for  the  avoiding  of  scandalous  quarrels  and  schisms,  it  was 
thought  expedient  to  alter  it. 

"3.  Jerome  states  it  as  di  historical  fact,  that  this  change 
in  the  government  of  the  church,  this  creation  of  a  superior 
order  of  ministers,  took  place,  not  at  once,  but  by  degrees, — 
^Paulatim^  says  he,  'by  little  and  little.' 

"4.  Jerome  states,  as  historical  facts,  that  the  elevation 
of  one  presbyter  over  the  others  was  a  hitman  contrivance; 
was  not  imposed  by  authority,  but  crept  in  hij  custom;  and 
that  the  presbyters  of  his  day  kneio  this  very  well. 

"5.  Jerome  states  it  as  a  historical  fact,  that  the  first 
bishops  were  made  by  the  presbyters  themselves,  and  conse- 
quently they  could  neither  have,  nor  communicate  any 
authority  above  that  of  presbyters.     ^ Afterwards,^  says  he, 

135  Apud  veteres  iidem  episcopi  et  presbuteri  fuerintj  quia  illud  nomen 
dignitatis,  est}  hoc,  aetatis. — Ep.  ad  Oceanum,  Tom.  4,  p.  648 

19 


218  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

'to  prevent  schism,  one  was  elected  to  preside  over  the  rest.' 
Elected  and  commissioned  by  whom?  By  the  ^presbyters; 
for  he  immediately  gives  you  a  broad  fact  which  it  is  im- 
possible to  explain  away.  '  At  Alexandria,'  he  tells  you, 
'  from  the  evangelist  Mark  to  the  bishops  Heraclas  and 
Dionysius,'  i.  e.,  till  about  the  middle  of  the  third  century,- 
'  the  presbyters  always  chose  one  of  their  number,  placed 
him  in  a  superior  station,  and  gave  him  the  title  of  bishop.' 

"  It  is  inconceivable,  how  Jerome  should  tell  the  bishops 
to  their  faces  that  Christ  never  gave  them  any  superiority 
over  the  presbyters  ;  that  custom  was  their  only  title  ;  and 
that  the  presbyters  were  perfectly  aware  of  this,  unless  he 
was  supported  by  facts  which  they  were  unable  to  contra- 
dict. Their  silence  under  his  challenges  is  more  than  a 
presumption  that  they  found  it  wise  to  lefhim  alone."  ^^^ 

The  testimony  of  Jerome  affords  an  authentic  record  of 
the  change  that  was  introduced  into  the  government  of  the 
church,  and  the  causes  that  led  on  to  this  change,  by 
which  the  original  constitution  was  wholly  subverted.  It 
was  in  his  day  a  known  and  acknowledged  fact,  that  pre- 
lacy had  no  authority  from  Christ  or  his  apostles, — no 
divine  right  to  its  high  pretensions.  "  The  presbyters 
know  that  they  are  subject  to  their  bishops,"  not  by  divine 
right  or  apostolical  succession,  but  '■'■by  the  custom  of  the 
churchy  And  to  the  same  effect,  is  the  admission  of  his 
contemporary,  Augustin,  the  renowned  bishop  of  Hippo, 
which  we  give  in  the  words  of  a  distinguished  prelate  of 
the  church  of  England,  as  quoted  by  Aynton.i^v  "The 
office  of  a  bishop  is  above  the  office  of  a  priest  [presbyter], 
not  by  the  authority  of  Scripture,  but  after  the  names  of 
honor,  which  through  the  custom  of  the  church  have  now 
obtained."  138     Episcopacy,  according  to  this  eminent  and 

136  Mason's' Works,  Vol,  III,  pp.  233—251. 

137  Jewel,  Defence  of  his  Apology,  pp.  122,  123. 

138  Quanquam  secundum  honorum  vocabula  quae  jam,  ecclesiae  usus  obti- 
nuit,  episcopatus  presbyterio  major  sit3  tamen  in  multis  rebus  Augustinus 
Hieronymo  minor  est. — Ef.  ad  Hier.,  19,  alias  83,  §  33,  Op.,  Tom  2,  col.  153, 


EQUALITY    OF    BISIIOrS    AND    TRESBYTERS.  219 

ancient  prelate,  is  the  result  of  custom,  without  any  scrip- 
tural warrant  whatever. 

This  is  in  accordance,  also,  with  the  authority  of  Hilary, 
which  has  been  given  above.  What  a  note  of  triumphant 
exultation  would  prelacy  raise,  did  all  antiquity  offer  half 
as  much  in  defence  of  her  lofty  claims  as  these  fathers 
allege  against  them. 

The  niost  distinguished  of  the  Greek  fathers,  again,  con- 
cur with  those  of  the  Latin  church,  in  their  views  of  the 
identity  of  bishops  and  presbyters.  Chrysostora,  A.  D.  407, 
in  commenting  upon  the  apostles'  salutation  of  the  bishops 
of  Philippi,  exclaims,  "How  is  this?  Were  there  many 
bishops  in  one  city?  By  no  means;  but  he  calls  the  pres- 
byters by  this  name;'  for  at  that  time  both  were  so  called. 
The  bishop  was  also  called  duxxorog,  servant^  minister;  for, 
writing  to  Timothy,  who  was  bishop,  he  says,  '  make  full 
proof  of  thy  diaxovlavj  ministry.''  He  also  instructs  him  to 
lay  hands,  as  a  bishop,  suddenly  on  no  man.  And  again  : 
'which  was  given  thee  by  the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the 
presbytery.'  But  presbyters  [as  such]  did  not  lay  hands  on 
the  bishop.  Again,. writing  to  Titus,  he  says,  'for  this 
cause  I  left  thee  in  Crete,  that  thou  shouldst  ordain  presby- 
ters in  every  city  as  I  had  commanded  thee.'  'If  any  one 
be  blameless,  the  husband  of  one  wife.'  This  he  says  of  a 
bishop;  for  he  immediately  proceeds  to  add:  'a  bishop. must 
be  blameless,  as  the  steward  of  God,  not  self-willed.' 
Wherefore,  as  I  said,  presbyters  were  anciently  called 
bishops  and  stewards  of  Christ,  and  bishops  Avere  called 
presbyters.  For  this  reason,  even  now,  many  bishops 
speak  of  their  fellow-presbyter  and  fellow-minister;  and 
finally,  the  name  of  bishop  and  presbyter  is  given  to  each 
indiscriminately.'''^^^     Again:   with  reference  to  Paul,  in 

139  Vy;/  emaxoTiotg  y.al  diaxdpoig,  ri  lovio;  fuag  nuleojg 
no^Xol  inlaxoTcoi,  iicrav ;  Ovdafi(ag'  dlXu  jovg  nQerr^vtigovg 
oviug   IxdcXeas''  tots   yuQ  reojg   hxoiviopovv  xoXg  6v6{.iaai,   xal 


220  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHUHCH. 

1  Tim.  3:  8,  Chrysostom  says,  that  after  discoursing  of 
bishops,  and  showing  what  they  should  possess,  and  from 
what  they  ought  to  abstain,  he  proceeds  immediately  to 
speak  of  deacons,  passing  by  the  order  of  presbyters.  Why 
so  ?  Because  there  is  not  much  distinction  between  them 
and  bishops.  For  they  also  are  set  for  the  instruction  and 
government  of  the  church.  What  he  had  said  of  bishops 
was  also  applicable  to  presbyters;  they  have  the  superiority 
merely  in  the  imposition  of  hands,  and  in  this  respect  alone 
take  precedence  of  the  presbyters. i^^  This  was  said  in 
relation  to  the  time  then  present.  Even  at  this  late  period 
this  eminent  prelate  recognizes  only  a  trifling  distinction 
between  bishop  and  presbyter. 


didyorog  6  Irtlay.onog  ll'cysjo.  Jia  lovio  yqacfojv  y.ul  Ti^ioOm 
e^BYB'  Tr\v  diuy.ovlav  <jov  7ih]QO(a6Qi]00v,  iTTiaxoTTCo  oviv.  otu 
yd.Q  InioHonog  -^Vy  cpijal  ngog.  aviov  /elQcxg  Ta%EO}g  /HTjdsvl 
hniTldsr  xal  Ttdliv  o  idodt]  aov  /tteTO.  eTnOecrecog  i(bv  /eigCov 
Tou  rroea^vTsghv  ovk  dcv  ds  nQSO^vTsgoi  eniaxonov  hx^iQoro- 
pi]aav.  Kal  ndlip  nqog  Tliov  yqucpoiv  (pijul'  joviov  /dgiv 
xuTsXi'Tiov  GS  Iv  KQYiirj,  h'a  y.fnaajr^arjg  yaru  noliv  TiQeo^vih- 
Qovg,  (hg  eyci)  aoi  diera^diJi]V'  ei' Tig  dt'eyyhjTog,  /Ltiug  yvvaiybg 
Avr^o'  a  TtsQl  TOv  iniaxuTTOv  cpijai.  Kal  8in(hp  ravia  EvdsMg 
inqyaye'  del  yuo  ibv  hnloHonov  d.viyyhjTOV  eipao,  &g  Qeov 
oiyopo/iiop,  f-iri  avdadi].  "  Orteg  ovp  E(pi]P,  xal  ol  ngea^vTsgoc 
TO  nalaibp  iyaXovPio  enlayonot  yal  didy.ovov  tou  Xgiaiov,  xai 
ol  Iniayonoi  TrgEU^vxegov.  oOep  yal  pvp  noXlol  Gv/tingea^vT^gca 
iniaxonol  ygdcfiovac^  xal  avpdiayora.  lomop  da  to  idiu^OP 
hyuaTCi  (x7TOVEPEfJ7]Tat  brofta,  6  inlayonog  xal  6  ngsa^vTegog. — 
Chrysostom,  Ep.  ad  Phil,  Tom,  11,  p.  194. 

^■*°  ^talEyd/iiepog  negl  eniaxorcop  y.al  xagayri]gi(Tag  avwvg, 
xal  elnihp  xlra  fiEP  exsip,  tIpojp  ds  unsx^oOai,  /^rj,  xoil  to  twv 
ngsa^viEgMP  idyjua  dccpslg,  8\g  rovg  diaxovovg  i^iETE7iq8i]as.  TL 
driTiOTE ;  OTt  0(3  TioXb  fiiaov  atriUP  xal  iwv  E7iiax67ioiv,  Kal 
yuo  xal  avTol  didaaxallap  eIoip  upadsdEyjuePOi  xal  Txgoaraaiap 
TTJj  Exxhjoiag-  xal  a  negi  Iniaxonbyp  eine.  ravra  xal  ngea^v- 
Tsgoig  aouoTTSi'  rrj  yag  ^EigoTOPlci  fiovt]  inEg^E^rixaai  xai 
TouTO)  (loi'OP  doxovai  txIeopexteXp  lovg  ngsa^vTEgovg. — Ibid., 
Ep.  ad  Tim.  1,  Tom.  11,  p.  604. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  221 

Theodoret,  also,  who  lived  only  a  few  years  later  than 
Chrysostom,  repeats  substantially  the  same  sentiments. 
In  relation  to  the  salutation  of  Paul  to  the  Philippians, 
c.  1:  1,  he  says,  "the  apostle  addresses  himself  to  the 
priesthood  and  to  the  saints  who  are  under  them,  in  which 
terni  he  includes  all  who  had  received  baptism.  But 
he  calls  the  presbyters  bishops ;  for  they  had,  at  •  that 
time,  the  same  names,  as  we  learn  from  the  history  of 
the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.'*  The  writer  then  proceeds 
to  remark  upon  the  presbyters  of  Ephesus,  Acts  20 : 
17,  who  in  verse  28  are  called  bishops.  From  this  he 
goes  on  to  speak  of  the  instructions  given  to  Titus,  who 
was.  left  in  Crete,  to  ordain  presbyters  in  every  city ;  but  on 
being  directed  what  persons  to  choose,  he  is  told  that  "a 
bishop  must  be  blameless,"  &c.  He  then  adverts  to  the 
fact,  that  the  apostle  speaks  only  of  the  two  orders  of  bish- 
ops and  deacons^  without  any  mention  of  presbyters ;  and 
of  the  impossibility  of  supposing  that  several  bishops  could 
have  borne  rule  in  the  same  city.  After  this,  he  proceeds 
to  say  ;  ''■so  that  it  is  evident  that  he  denominates  the  pres- 
byters bishops.^^  ^'^i     This  sentiment  he  repeats  in  remarking 

^^^  noLGViu  xat  aviov  iniGiO.lev^  toT^  da  jr^g  IsQwavvrjg  ^|fw- 
(.ih'Oig  xai  zoZg  (xnb  rovroiv  noi^uaivo/u^i^oig.  uylovg  yuq  jovg  lov 
^anitafiuTog  d^Kxi&iviug  oii'ui.iuaev^  iniaytoTiovg  de  rovg  ttqect- 
^viigovg  xuXeT^  CciKfoxequ  yuQ  ei/op  xur  ty.tlpov  top  xuiqop  tu 
^poiiura.  Kul  tovio  t^uotg  xui  r]  jwp  //^dleow  laroqld  dtduaxei. 
ElQTjXihg  yag  6  /uaxdQiog  Aovxug.^  &g  elg  rrip  Mlh]TOP  lovg 
' E(plai(t)P  fiSTefii/ml/aTO  ngeaSvjtQOvg  6  -OeTog  unoarolog^  liyev 
it«l  Tu  ngbg  aviovg  elQi]^iva-  nQoai/eTS  yug  cpi]aip  kavrolg  xui 
tkxptI  7V0i^pi(p^  BP  (S y^ug  s&stO  to  tipsv/hu  tq  uyiop  inKTuonovg, 
TiOLfxaLpsiP  TriP  ixxlrjcrlap  jou  Xgiarov'  y.al  lovg  ctvio-vg  xal 
ngea^visgovg  teal  ^Tiiay.onpvg  ^poftuasp.  Ovtco  xal  ip.  irj 
ngug  t6p  fiayAgiOP  Tiiop  IniGiolrf'  dtu  rovTO  xarilindp  as  ip 
KgriTT}^  "pa  naTaair'^arig  ycuTU.  ttoIip  Ttgea^vxigovg^  wg  ^.j'w  aoi> 
dieTu^<xf^a]P.  Kal  eItiop  onoiovg  siPcn  /gij  jovg  ^^'^Qoiopovjiii- 
povg  Ltriyaye-  dtl  yug  jdp  STtlayonop  uptyy.hpop  eipui^  (hg 
Oeov  diKOPOuor.  Kul  ePTuv&u  d&  dijlop  jovio  nenobjxe'  loTg 
19* 


222  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

upon  Phil.  2:  25;  where  he  says,  that  "those  who,  in  the 
beginning  of  the  epistle,  are  called  bishops,  evidently  be- 
longed to  the  grade  of  the  presbytery."  The  passage  is 
given  entire  in  the  margin. ^^^  Again,  1  Tim.  3 :  1,  he 
takes  occasion  to  say,  that  the  apostle  "  calls  the  presbyter 
a  bishop,  as  we  have  had  occasion  to  show  in  our  commen- 
tary on  the  epistle  to  the  Philippians."i^3 

The  following  commentary  of  the  Greek  scholiast,  of 
a  later  date,  shows  that  these  views  were  still  retained  in 
the  Eastern  church.  "Inasmuch  as  the  custom  of  the 
New  Testament  especially,  of  calling  bishops  presbyters, 
and  presbyters  bishops,  seems  to  be  silently  neglected  by 
many,  it  may  be  shown  from  Acts  20 :  17 ;  and  from  the 
epistle  to  Titus;  and  again,  from  that  to  the  Philippians ; 
and,  yet  again,  from  the  first  epistle  to  Timothy.  From 
the  Acts  the  argument  is  as  follows: — 'From  Miletus,  Paul 
sent  to  Ephesus,  and  called  the  presbyters  of  the  church.' 
He  called  them  not  bishops ;  but  farther  on, he  says,  'Over 
which  the  Holy  Ghost  hath  made  you  bishops  to  feed  the 
church.' — From  the  epistle  to  Titus,  '  Having  established 
presbyters  throughout  the  churches  as  I  commanded  you.' — 
From  the  epistle  to  the  Philippians,  '  To  those  that  are  in 
Philippi  with  the  bishop  and  deacons.'     From  the  epistle 

yixQ  iTtiayoTTOig  TOvg  dtaaovovg  uvve'Cev^F,^  t^v  nQsar^vTigojv  oi5 
TCOij]aufiEvog  fiv^^ui^v  aXloig  ts  ovde  oiov  xe  r^v  TtolXovg  ^niu- 
xoTiovg  filav  Ttokiv  noiy.alveiv'  Cag  Elvat,  drilov  otv  TO^g  fisv 
TiQBa^vTEQOvg  iTTiay.dTTOvg  (hpOjuaae.—TJieodoret,  Ep.  ad  Phil,  p. 
445,  seq.  Tom.  3,  ed.  Halens. 

^^^  noXld.  xal  rovTOv  (Epaphroditus)  xaTOQ&cbfiara  die^rildsv 
(Paulus),  oiy.  (jcdslcpov  fiopov^  dilla.  xul  ovvsQybv  val  avarga- 
Ti(bTi]v  dTTOJtaleaag.  Andajolop  de  udrov  yJxXi]zsv  adTWP  <hg 
jriv  in:iiit8Xsiap  aiiav  ifinsTnaTEVjuevoP'  cog  elpai  driXov  ozi  tnb 
TOvTOV  iiiXovv  ol  iv  tgJ  ngooijuiro  yhj&evTEg  ETclcjyonov,  rod 
nQEa^vTBQiov  drjlovdii  rriv  jdc^iv  7ili]Q0vi'TEg.  —  Ibid.,  Ep.  ad 
Tim.,  p.  459,  Tom.  3. 

^'*^  ^ Enla yoTiov    8b.    tvjuv&a  top    tcqeu'^vteqov    leyEi,   w?   t-^v 

Ttgog     (iHltTTJlTjCTLOVg     l7lVUl0lr\V      E(}U1]l'£V0PTEg      UTlEdEl^ajUEV. — 

Ibid.,  p.  652. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND   PRESBYTERS.  223 

to  Timothy  the  same  may  be  inferred  by  analogy,  when 
he  says,  'If  a  man  desire  the  office  of  a  bishop  he  desireth 
a  good  work; '  '  A  bishop  must  be  blameless,'  &c."i^4 

This  scholiast  has  but  hinted  at  the  argument  from  these 
passages,  to  which  he  refers,  but  he  has  said  enough  to  show 
that  the  doctrine  of  the  ministerial  parity  of  bishops  and 
presbyters  was  still  maintained  during  the  middle  ages,  in 
the  Eastern  church,  and  justly  defended  on  the  authority 
of  the  Scriptures. 

Elias,  archbishop  of  Crete,  A.  D.  787,  asserts  the  identity 
of  bishops  and  presbyters ;  and,  in  commenting  upon 
Gregory  Nazianzen,  remarks,  that  this  bishop,  in  the  fifth 
century,  was  accustomed  to  denominate  presbyters,  bishops, 
antistites,  making  no  distinction  between  them;  —  a  cir- 
cumstance which  this  scholiast  has  noticed  in  many  pas- 
sages from  Gregory. 1^^ 

It  is  truly  remarkable  how  long,  and  how  distinctly, 
these  views  of  the  original  sameness  of  bishops  and  pres- 
byters were  retained  on  the  church.  Isidorus  Hispalensis, 
bishop  of   Seville  in  Spain,  in  the  seventh  century,  and 

^**' Erteidri  XarO-(xi'8i  TOvg  nollovg  tj  awi'idsicx^  jualiara  ttjj 
xaivr^g  diu&r^iii^g^  TOvg  tTiioxuTTOvg  TTQeaSvriQOvg  drnfiu':^ovaa 
xal  TOvg  Ttgea^vitQOug  iTtiaxunovg,  ai^aeioniov  tovto  li^iev&ev 
xal  6X  Trig  TTQug  Tliov  imarolrig^  siv  ds  xal  nQog  flnXinTtr]- 
alovg  ical  in  ttjj  Ttgug  7\u68'eov  rrocdtj/c.  'Etc  f.itP  olv  twv 
ITqcjc^eojv  ivjevd-Ev  tail  Tiei(j(yr\vav  nvql  tovtov^  yiyQumav  yag 
ovTMg'  "En  de  ttjj  MiXtitov  Tttftipag  elg"Eq:eaoi^  fieiey.ulhCTuTo 
Toxig  nqsa^vTBQOvg  t^,  izxhjuiag.  Kal  oi^x  £Vot]xs  lovg  sjiiayd- 
Ttovg,  eiia  imcpeQev  ev  (o  -dfidig  to  rtPSv/iia  to  uyiov  ed-ejo  STticr- 
itdnovg^  Ttoifnutpeiv  t^v  exxlijolai'.  Ex  8e  ir^g  nqbg  Tliof 
tTtujiolrig'  KaTaari'iaeig  xaju  noliv  TtQsa^vTigovg^  (hg  iy(x>  aoc 
dc6Ta^(x/iiep.  'Ex  8b  rrjg  ngog  (Inlirtnrjcriovg'  ToTg  ovaiv  Iv 
^nXinnoig  awETtiaxorcoig  xal  diuxoroig.  Oluai  Se,  ort  ex  ttjj 
TtQOiigag  itqbg  Tifid&eov  dcvaloyiauusvog  tovto  ixlaSsTv  el' Tig 
y^Q,  ^'/O^t,  Trjg  intaxonrig  uQeysTai^  xuXov  eqyov  i7n&v/.ieT.  del 
oZ)^  TOP  inlcrxoTtov  divercilriTiiov  elfav — Cited  by  Rothe  from  Salma- 
sius,  Episcop.  et  Presb.,  p.  13. 

145  Greg.  Naz.,  Tom.  2,  p.  830.  Ed.  Colon.  1590.  Also  Ed.  Basil. 
1571,  pp.  2G2,  2G4. 


224  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

one  of  the  most  learned  men  of  that  age,  copies  with  ap- 
probation the  authority  of  Jerome  given  above,  as  an  ex- 
pression of  his,  own  sentiments.  He  may  accordingly  be 
regarded  as  expressing  the  sentiments  of  the  Western 
church  at  this  time. 

The  views  of  the  church  at  Alexandria,  in  the  tenth 
century,  have  already  been  expressed  in  the  extract  from 
Eutychius  given  above. 

Bernaldus  Constantiensis,  about  A.  D.  1088,  a  learned 
monk,  and  a  zealous  defender  of  Gregory  VII,  after  citing 
Jerome,  continues:  "  Inasmuch,  therefore,  as  bishops  and 
presbyters  were  anciently  the  same,  without  doubt  they 
had  power  to  loose  and  to  bind,  and  to  do  other  acts  which 
are  now  the  special  prerogatives  of  the  bishop.  But  after 
the  presbyters  began  to  be  restricted  by  Episcopal  pre- 
eminence, what  was  formerly  lawful  for  them  became  un- 
lawful. Ecclesiastical  authority  having  delegated  such 
prerogatives  to  the  prelates  alone." i^^ 

Even  pope  Urban  II,  1091,  says, — "We  regard  deacons 
and  presbyters  as  belonging  to  the  sacred  order,  since  these 
are  the  only  orders  which  the  primitive  church  is  said  to 
have  had.    For  these  only  have  we  apostolical  authority."  1^7 

Gratian  again,  a  benedictine,  eminent  for  his  learning 
and  talents,  a  century.later,  adopts  all  the  passages  cited 
above  from  Jerome,  ad  Tit.  IM^ 

Nicholas  Tudeschus,  archbishop  of  Panorma,  about  A. 

146  Quum  igitur  presbyteri  et  episcopi  untiquitus,  idem  fuisse  legantur 
etiam  eandem  ligandi  atque  solvendi  potestatem,  et  alia  nunc  episcopis 
specialia,  habuisse  non  dubitantur.  Postquam  antem  presbyteri  ab  epis- 
copali  excellentia  cohibiti  sunt,  coepit  eis  non  licere  quod  licuit,  videlicit 
quod  ecclesiastica  auctoritas  solis  pontificibus  exequendum  delegavit. — 
Be  Presbyterorum  officio  tract,  in  Monmentorum  res  Allemannorum  illus- 
trant.    S.  Bias,  1792,  4to.  Tom.  2,  384  seq. 

147  Sacros  autem  ordines  ducimus  diaconatum  et  presbyteratum.  Hos 
siquidem  solos  primitiva  legitur  ecclesia  habuisse ;  super  his  solum  pre- 
ceptum  habemus  apostoli.— Cone.  Benerent,  an,  1090,  can.  1. 

148  (Dist.  XCV.,  c.  5.)  Epist.  ad  Evangel.,  (Dist.  XCIII.,  c.  24.)  and 
Isidori  Hist.,  (Dist.  XXI.,  c.  1  ) 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  225 

D.  1428,  says :  —  "  Formerly  prcshjters  governed  the  church 
in  common,  and  ordained  the  clergyM'^ 

It  is  perhaps  still  more  remarkable  that  even  the  papal 
canonist,  Jo.  Paul  Launcelot,  A.  D.  1570,  introduces  the 
passage  of  Jerome  without  any  attempt  to  refute  it.i^^ 

Thus  through  all  the  middle  ages  during  the  proudest 
ascendency  of  prelatical  power,  the  doctrine  of  the  original 
equality  of  bishops  and  presbyters,  remained  an  acknowl- 
edged sentiment  in  the  Roman  Catholic  church,  attested 
by  a  succession  of  the  most  learned  of  her  clergy. 

Gieseler  remarks,  "  That  the  distinction  between  the 
divine  and  the  ecclesiastical  appointment,  institution  was 
of  less  importance  in  the  middle  ages  than  in  the  modern 
catholic  church,  and  this  view  of  the  original  identity  of 
bishops  and  presbyters,  was  of  no  practical  importance. 
It  was  not  till  after  the  Reformation  that  it  was  attacked. 
Michael  de  Medina,  about  A.  D.  1570,  does  not  hesitate 
to  assert  that  those  fathers  were  essentially  heretics ;  but 
adds,  that  out  of  respect  for  these  fathers,  this  heresy  in 
them  is  not  to  be  condemned.  Bellarmine  declares  this  a 
'very  inconsiderate  sentiment.'  Thenceforth  all  Catholics, 
as  well  as  English  Episcopalians,  maintain  an  original 
difference  between  bishop  and  presbyter." i^i 

149  Super  prima  parte  Primi,  cap.  5,  ed.  Lugdun,  154-3,  fol.  1126.  Olim 
presbyteri  in  commune  regebant  ecclesiam  et  ordinabant  sacerdotes. 

150  Institutt.  juris  Canon.,  Lib.  1,  Tit.  21,  §  3. 

151  Comp.  especially  Petavii  de  ecclesiastica  hierarchia  Lib.  5,  and 
dissertatt.  thcologic.  Lib.  1,  in  his  theolog.  dogmat.  Tom.  4,  p.  164. 
On  the  other  side,  IValonis  Messalini  (Claud.  Salmasii)  diss,  de  episcopis 
et  presbyteris.  Lugd.  Bat.  1641, 8vo.  Dav.  Blondelli  apologia  pro  sententia 
Hieronymi  de  episcopis  et  presbyteris.  Amstelod.  1616,  4to,  Against 
these  Henr.  Hammondus  dissertatt.  IV.,  quibus  episcopatus  jura  ex  sacra 
scriptura  et  prima  antiquitate  adstruunter.  Lond.  16j1.  The  controversy 
was  long  continued.  On  the  side  of  the  Episcopalians,  Jo.  Pearson,  Guil. 
Beveridge,  Henr.  Dodicell,  Jos.  Bingham,  Jac.  Usserius.  On  that  of  the 
Presbyterians,  Jo.  Dallaeus,  Camp.  Vitringa ;  also  the  Lutherans,  JoacA. 
Hildebrand,  Just.  Henn.  Boehmer,  Jo.  Franc,  Buddeus,  Christ.  Math. 
Pfaff,  etc.,  comp.  Jo.  Phil.  Gablcr  de  episcopis  primae  ecclesiae  Christ, 
eorumque  origine  diss.    Jenae,  180o,  4to. 


226  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

.In  view  of  the  whole  course  of  the  argument,  then,  have, 
we  not  good  and  sufficient  reasons,  for  refusing  the  Episco- 
pal claim  of  an  original  distinction  between  bishops  and 
presbyters,  as  a  groundless  assumption  ?  It  has  been  dis- 
owned by  prelates,  bishops,  and  learned  controversialists, 
and  commentators,  both  in  the  Eastern  and  Western 
churches,  of  every  age  down  to  the  sixteenth  century.  It 
was  unknown  to  those  early  fathers,  who  lived  nearest  to 
the  apostolical  age,  some  of  whom  were  the  immediate 
successors  of  the  apostles.  It  was  wholly  unauthorized  by 
the  apostles  themselves.  On  the  contrary,  they  assign  to 
bishops  and  presbyters  the  same  specific  duties.  They  re- 
quire in  both  the  same  qualifications.  They  address  them 
by  the  same  names  and  titles  interchangeably  and  indis- 
criminately. Are  bishops  and  presbyters,  not  then,  one 
and  the  same  ?  —  the  same  in  office,  in  honor,  in  power, 
in  all  the  prerogatives,  rights  and  privileges  of  those  pas- 
tors and  teachers,  to  whom  the  apostles,  at  their  decease, 
resigned  the  churches,  for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  for 
the  work  of  the  ministry,  for  the  edifying  of  the  body  of 
Christ  ?  Or  must  we  believe  that  the  presbyter  after  all 
is  a  mere  subaltern  of  the  bishop ;  ordained  of  God  to  per- 
form only  the  humbler  offices  of  the  ministry,  and  to  supply 
the  bishop's. lack  of  service?  "  Must  we  believe,  moreover, 
that  the  bishop,  this  honored  and  most  important  dignitary 
of  the  church,  in  whom  all,  clerical  grace  centres,  and 
through  whose  hands  alone,  all  that  authority  and  power 
has  been  transmitted,  which  is  essential  to  the  perpetuity 
of  the  ministry  and  the  just  administration  of  the  ordi- 
nances,—that  this  important  functionary  is  but  a  nameless 
nondescript,  known  by  no  title,  represented  by  no  person 
or  class  of  persons  in  the  apostolical  churches,  and  having 
no  distinct,  specific  duties  prescribed  in  the  New  Testament? 
All  this  may  be  asserted  and  re-afhrmed,  as  a  .thousand 
times  it  has  been ;  but  it  can  never  be  proved.     It  must 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  227 

be  received,  if  received  at  all,  with  blind  credulity;  not  on 
reasonable  evidence.  Verily  this  vaunting  of  high-church 
Episcopacy  is  an  insult  to  reason; — a  quiet  complacent 
assumption,  which  makes  "implicit  faith  the  highest  dem- 
onstration." If  any  such  assertor  of  these  absurd  pre- 
tensions finds  himself  disquieted,  at  any  time,  by  the  re- 
newed remonstrances  of  Scripture,  truth  and  reason,  to 
repel  these  impertinent  intruders,  and  restore  the  equilibrium 
of  his  mind,  he  has  only  to  "  shake  his  head  and  tell  them 
how  superior  after  all  is  faith  to  logic ! " 

The  foregoing  chapters  give  us  an  outline  of  that  eccle- 
siastical organization  which  the  churches  received  from 
the  hands  of  the  apostles,  and  which  was  continued  in  the 
primitive  church  for  some  time  succeeding  the  apostolic 
age.  The  government  is  altogether  popular.  The  sove- 
reign authority  is  vested  in  the  people.  From  theni  all 
the  laws  originate;  through  them  they  are  administered. 
The  government  guarantees  to  all  its  members  the  enjoy- 
ment of  equal  rights  and  privileges,  secures  to  them,  the 
right  of  private  judgment,  and  admits  of  their  intervention 
in  all  its  public  affairs.  It  extends  to  all  the  right  of  suf- 
frage. Each  community  is  an  independent  sovereignty, 
subject  to  no  other  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction,  contrary  to 
their  own  free-will.  .  Their  confessions,  formularies  and 
terms  of  communion  are  formed  according  to  their  own 
interpretation  of  the  laws  of  God ;  and  if  the  deportment 
of  any  one  is  subject  to  impeachment,  the  case  is  decided 
by  the  impartial  verdict  of  his  brethren.  Their  officers 
are  few  ;  and  their  ministers,  equal  in  rank  and  in  power, 
are  the  servants,  not  the  lords,  of  the  people.  The  entire 
polity  of  the  apostolical  and  primitive  churches  was  framed 
on  the  principles,  not  of  a  monarchical  hierarchy,  but  of  a  pop- 
ular and  elective  government.  In  one  word,  it  was  a  repub- 
lican government  administered  with  republican  simplicity. 


228  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

This  exhibition  of  the  first  organization  of  the  Christian 
church  suggests  a  variety  of  reflections,  some  of  which 
we  must  be  permitted,  before  closing  this  view  of  the  apos- 
tolical and  primitive  church,  to  suggest  to  the  consideration 
of  the  reader. 

REMARKS. 

1.  The  primitive  church  was  organized,  purely  a  religious 
society. 

It  had  for  its  object  only  the  great  interests  of  morality 
and  religion.  It  interfered  not  with  the  secular  or  private 
pursuits  of  its  members,  except  so  far  as  they  relate  to  the 
great  end  for  which  the  church  was  formed, —  the  pro- 
motion of  pure  and  undefiled  religion.  Whenever  the 
Christian  church  has  let  itself  down  to  mingle  or  interfere 
with  the  secular  pursuits  of  men,  the  only  result  has  been 
her  own  disgrace  and  the  dishonor  of  the  great  cause 
which  she  was  set  to  defend. 

2.  It  employed  only  moral  means  for  the  accomplishment 
of  religious  ends. 

The  apostles  sought  by  kind  and  tender  entreaty  to 
reclaim  the  wandering.  They  taught  the  church  to  do 
the  same ;  and  to  separate  the  unworthy  from  their  com- 
munion. But  they  gave  no  countenance  to  the  exercise 
of  arbitrary  authority  over  the  conduct  or  the  consciences 
of  men.  They  neither  allow^ed  themselves,  nor  the  church, 
to  exercise  any  other  authority  than  that  of  the  word  of 
God  and  of  Christ,  enforced  by  instruction,  by  counsel,  and 
by  admonition.  They  had  ever  before  them  the  beautiful 
image  of  a  religious  fraternity,  united  together  in  the  bonds 
of  faith  and  mutual  afTection,  and  striving  together  in 
purity  and  in  love  for  the  promotion  of  godliness  becoming 
Christian  men. 

3.  This  church  was  at  first  free  from  all  entanglement 
with  the  state. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  229 

It  had  no  affinity  to  the  existing  forms  of  state  govern- 
ment, nor  any  connection  with  them.  It  vested  the  church 
power  in  the  only  appropriate  source  of  all  social  power, — 
in  the  people.  It  is  only  in  this  voluntary  system,  in  which 
neither  state  power  nor  church  power  can  interfere  with 
the  religious  convictions  of  men,  that  the  church  of  Christ 
finds  an  asylum  for  the  preservation  of  its  purity  and  the 
exercise  of  its  legitimate  influence. 

But  the  church  soon  began  to  be  assimilated  to  the 
form  of  the  existing  civil  governments,  and  in  the  end  a 
"  hierarchy  of  bishops,  metropolitans,  and  patriarchs  arose, 
corresponding  to  the  graduated  rank  of  the  civil  adminis- 
tration. Ere-long  the  Roman  bishop  assumed  pre-eminence 
above  all  others." i^^  United  with  the  civil  authority  in  its 
interests,  assimilated  to  that  power  in  its  form  of  govern- 
ment, and  secularized  in  spirit,  the  church,  under  Constan- 
tine  and  his  successors,  put  off  its  high  and  sacred  charac- 
ter, to  become  a  part  of  the  machinery  of  state  government. 
It  first  truckled  to  the  low  arts  of  state  policy,  and  then, 
with  insatiable  ambition,  assumed  at  last  the  supreme 
control  of  all  power,  human  and  divine. 

4.  It  is  another  advantage  of  the  system  of  the  primitive 
church,  that  it  was  fitted  for  any  form  of  government,  and 
for  any  state  of  society. 

Voluntary  and  simple  in  their  organization,  entirely  re- 
moved from  all  connection  with  the  civil  government,  with 
no  confederate  relations  among  themselves,  and  seeking 
only  by  the  pure  precepts  of  religion  to  persuade  men  in  ev- 
ery condition  to  lead  quiet  and  holy  lives,  these  Christian 
societies  were  adapted  to  any  state  of  society  and  any 
form  of  government.  This  primitive  Christianity  com- 
mended itself,  with  equal  facility,  to  the  rich  and  the  poor, 
the  learned  and  the  unlearned,  the  high  and  the  low; 
whether  it  addressed  itself  to  the  soldier,  the  fisherman  or 

153  Ranke's  Hist,  of  the  Popes,  Eng.  Trans.,  Vol.  I;  p.  29. 

20 


230  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  peasant,  it  equally  suited  their  condition.  It  gathered 
into  its  communion  converts  from  every  form  of  govern- 
ment, of  every  species  of  superstition,  and  of  every  condi- 
tion in  life,  and  by  its  wholesome  truths  and  simple  rites 
trained  them  up  for  eternal  life.  Stern  and  uncompromising 
in  its  purity  and  simplicity,  it  stood  aloof  from  all  other 
forms,  both  of  government  and  of  religion.  It  neither 
sought  favor  from  the  paganism  of  the  Gentile,  nor  the 
prejudice  of  the  Jew;  nor  yielded  compliance  to  the  des- 
potism of  Kome,  or  the  democracy  of  Greece,  while  it 
could  live  and  flourish  under  either  government  and  in  any 
state  of  society.  Can  the  same  be  said  with  equal  propri- 
ety of  Episcopacy?  Are  its  complicated  forms  and  cere- 
monials, its  robes  and  vestments,  its  rituals,  and  all  its 
solemn  pomp,  equally  adapted  to  every  state  of  religious 
feeling,  or  suited  alike  to  refined  society,  and  to  rude  and 
rustic  life?  In  its  complicated  forms  of  government,  are 
all  its  grades  of  office,  its  diocesan  and  metropolitan  con- 
federacies, and  its  absolute,  monarchical  powers,  equally 
congenial  to  every  kind  of  civil  government  ? 

5.  It  subjected  the  clergy  to  salutary  restraints  by  bring- 
ing them,  in  their  official  character,  under  the  watch  of  the 
church. 

The  apostles,  as  we  have  already  seen,  recognized  their 
own  accountability  to  the  church.  This  continued  after- 
wards to  be  an  established  principle  in  the  primitive  church. 
The  consciousness  that  their  whole  life  was  open  to  the 
judicial  inspection  of  those  to  whom  they  ministered,  and 
by  whom  they  were  most  intimately  known,  could  not  fail 
to  create  in  the  clergy  a  salutary  circumspection,  the  re- 
straints of  which  an  independent  ministry  under  another 
system  can  never  feel. 

6.  It  served  to  guard  them  also  against  the  workings  of 
an  unholy  ambition,  a  thirst  for  office,  and  the  love  of 
power. 


EQUALITY    OF    RTSTTOPS     ANH    PKKSRYTF.RS.  231 

•This  thought  is  necessarily  implied  in  the  preceding, 
but  it  is  of  such  importance  that  it  deserves  a  dis- 
tinct consideration.  Those  disgraceful  contests  for  prefer- 
ment, the  recital  of  which  crowds  the  page  of  ancient 
history,  belong  to  a  later  and  a  different  ecclesiastical 
polity. 

7.  It  was  adapted  also  to  guard  the  clergy  against  a 
mercenary  spirit. 

The  vast  revenue  of  a  church-establishment,  and  the 
princely  annuities  of  its  incumbents,  offer  an  incentive  to 
this  sordid  passion  which  Paul  in  his  poverty  could  never 
have  felt,  and  which  none  can  ever  feel,  who  receive  no 
more  than  a  humble  competence,  as  a  voluntary  offering  at 
the  hands  of  those  for  whom  they  labor. 

8.  The  system  was  well  suited  to  guard  the  church  from 
the  evils  of  a  sectarian  spirit. 

In  the  church  of  Christ  were  Jews,  jealous  for  the  law 
of  their  fathers.  There  were  also  Greeks,  who,  independent 
of  the  Mosaic  economy,  had  received  the  gospel  and  become 
Christians,  without  being  Jews  in  spirit.  Had  now  the 
church  assumed  the  form  of  a  national  establishment,  with 
its  prescribed  articles  of  faith,  its  ritual,  agenda,  &c.,  it  is 
difficult  to  conceive  how  the  opposing  views  of  these  dif- 
ferent parties  could  have  been  harmonized.  The  older 
apostles,  with  the  Jews,  might  have  maintained  with  greater 
firmness  their  Jewish  prejudice  as  they  observed  the  pure 
direction  of  Christianity  in  Paul  and  his  Gentile  converts, 
who  again  might  have  been  more  determined  in  their  op- 
position to  a  Judaizing  spirit.  So  that  these  germinating 
differences  might  have  ended  in  an  irreconcilable  opposition. 
As  it  was,  this  disturbing  influence  was  strongly  manifested 
in  all  the  churches,  so  that  it  required  all  the  wisdom  and 
influence  of  the  apostles  to  unite  their  Christian  converts 
in  an  organization  so  simple  as  that  which  they  did 
establish. 


232  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHTTRCTT. 

9.  It  left  the  apostles  and  pastors  free  to  pursue  their 
great  work,  without  let  or  hindrance  from  ecclesiastical 
authority  or  partizan  zeal. 

It  allowed  free  scope  for  the  fervid  zeal  of  the  early  pro- 
mulgators of  the  gospel  of  Christ,  and  permitted  them  to 
range  at  large  in  their  missionary  tours  for  the  conversion 
of  men,  unrestrained  by  the  rules  of  ecclesiastical  authority 
or  canonical  laws.  An  explanation,  given  and  received  in 
the  spirit  of  mutual  confidence,  reconciled  the  brethren 
whose  prejudice  was  excited  by  the  preaching  of  Peter  to 
the  Gentiles.  The  unhappy  division  between  Paul  and 
Barnabas  ended  in  the  furtherance  of  the  gospel,  both  be- 
ing at  liberty,  notwithstanding  this  sinful  infirmity,  to 
prosecute  their  labors  for  the  salvation  of  men  without 
being  arrested  by  the  bans  of  the  hierarchy,  or  trammelled 
by  ecclesiastical  jealousy  lest  the  souls,  whom  one  or  the 
other  should  win  to  Christ,  might  chance  not  to  have  been 
canonically  converted. 

10.  The  order  of  the  primitive  church  was  calculated  to 
preserve  peace  and  harmony  among  the  clergy. 

One  in  rank  and  power,  and  holding  the  tenure  of  their 
office  at  the  will  of  their  people,  they  had  few  temptations, 
comparatively,  to  engage  in  strife  one  with  another  for 
preferment ;  or  to  repine  at  the  advancement  of  one  of  their 
number,  who  by  his  superior  qualifications  was  promoted 
to  some  commanding  post  of  usefulness  above  them. 

I  know  indeed  that  Jerome  assigns  the  origin  of  Epis- 
copacy to  the  ambitious  contentions  of  the  clergy  in  the 
primitive  church  ;  as  though  this  were  an  expedient  to  heal 
their  divisions.  Now,  if  this  be  so,  I  have  only  to  say, 
that  the  remedy  proved  to  be  infinitely  worse  than  the 
evil  which  it  would  cure.  All  the  ecclesiastical  historians 
of  antiquity  most  fully  and  strongly  attest  the  fact,  that 
after  the  rise  of  diocesan  Episcopacy,  and  the  establish- 
ment of  the  various  grades  of  the  hierarchy,  the  spirit  of 


EQUALITY    OF    BlSIIOrS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  233 

faction  rose  high  among  the  clergy.  Insatiable  ambition 
possessed  all  orders  among  the  priesthood,  ragino-  like  a 
pestilence  through  their  several  ranks.  The  age  of  Con- 
stantine  and  his  successors,  within  which  the  system  of 
prelacy  was  matured,  was  pre-eminently  the  age  of  clerical 
ambition. 

"  In  the  age  we  speak  of,  which  seems  too  justly  styled 
ambitionis  saecuhcm,  the  age  of  ambition, —  though  those, 
whose  designs  agree  with  the  humor  of  it,  have  esteemed 
it  most  imitable  —  scarce  any  in  the  church  could  keep 
their  own,  that  had  any  there  greater  than  themselves  ; 
some  bishops,  and  not  only  the  presbyters  found  it  so, 
the  great  still  encroaching  upon  those,  whose  loiver  condi- 
tion made  them  obnoxious  to  the  ambition  and  usurpation 
of  the  more  potent. 

"  In  that  unhappy  time,  what  struggling  was  there 
in  bishops  of  all  sorts  for  more  greatness  and  larger 
power !  What  tugging  at  councils  and  court  for  these 
purposes  !"i^^ 

Socrates,  the  ecclesiastical  historian,  A.  D.  439,  alleges 
that  he  has  intermingled  the  history  of  the  ivars  of  those 
times,  as  a  relief  to  the  reader,  that  he  may  not  be  continu- 
ally detained  with  the  ambitious  contentions,  cpdovuclcf,  of 
the  bishops,  and  their  plots  and  counter-plots  against  each 
other.154     But  more  of  this  hereafter. 

11.  It  was  also  happily  suited  to  bless  the  people  with 
an  useful  and  efficient  ministry. 

Select  a  few  from  among  their  ministerial  brethren,  exalt 
them  to  the  high  places  of  Episcopal  power,  encircle  them 
with  the  mitre,  the  robe,  and  all  the  "paraphernalia  of 
pontifical  dignity,"  enthrone  them  securely  in  authority, 
settle  them  quietly  in  their  palaces  to  enjoy  the  ample 
benefices  of  an  irresponsible  office ;  and,  however  gratify- 

153  Clarkson's  Primitive  Episcopacy,  pp.  142,  143. 
^54  Introduction  to  Lib.  5. 

20=^ 


234  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ing  may  be  the  favors  which  you  have  bestowed,  you  have 
done  little  to  advance  their  ministerial  usefulness. 

Besides,  the  days  of  a  bishop's  activity  and  usefulness 
soon  pass  away,  but  his  office  still  remains.  Though 
passed  into  "the  sear  and  yellow  leaf  of  age,"  he  bears 
his  blushing  honors  still  upon  him.  In  the  circumstances 
of  the  case,  indeed,  he  can  scarcely  be  expected  to  resign 
his  office  ;  neither  can  he,  it  would  seem,  even  if  he  would, 
"when  once  made  bishop,  and  when  he  has  thus  received 
the  indelible,  invisible  mark  of  Episcopal  grace,  he  is  ab- 
solutely shut  up  to  the  necessity  of  continuing  in  office, 
however  unworthy  or  unfit  he  may  prove  or  find  himself 
tobe."i55 

What  an  incumbrance  to  the  ministrations  of  the  truth 
as  it  is  in  Jesus,  again,  are  the  forms,  and  rites,  and 
observances  of  the  Episcopal  service.  Here  are  thirty-six 
festivals,  and  one  hundred  fasts,  annually  claiming  the 
attention  of  the  preacher.  Then  there  is  the  "holy 
catholic  church;"  the  mysteries  of  the  sacraments,  bap- 
tismal regeneration,  and  the  awful  presence  in  the  elements 
of  the  eucharist;  the  holy  order  of  bishops;  "the  ascending 
orders  of  the  hierarchy;"  "the  most  excellent  liturgy;"  the 
validity  of  Episcopal  ordination,  "covenant  mercies,"  and  I 
know  not  what,  all  pressing  their  claims  on  the  attention  of 
the  Episcopal  minister,  and  demanding  a  place  in  the 
ministrations  of  the  pulpit. 

155  Constit.  and  Canons  of  Prot.  Epis.  Church,  pp.  301,  303.  "  So  far/' 
says  Dr.  Hawks,  "as  our  research  has  extended,  this  law  is  without  a  pre- 
cedent in  the  history  of  the  Christian  church.  We  may  be  mistaken, 
but  we  believe  that  ours  is  the  first  church  in  Christendom,  that  ever 
legislated  for  the  express  purpose  of  preventing  Episcopal  resignations  j 
for  this  canon  prescribes  so  many  restrictions,  that  the  obstacles  render 
it  almost  impossible  for  a  bishop  to  lay  down  his  jurisdiction.  The  matter 
is  one  which  the  practice  of  the  church  has  heretofore  left  to  be  settled 
between  God  and  the  conscience  of  the  bishops  j  and  it  may  well  be 
questioned,  whether  it  be  not  best  in  all  cases,  there  to  leave  it." — Cited 
from  Smyth's  Eccl.  Republicanism,  p.  167. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    rRESBYTERS.  235 

Add  to  these  the  sublimer  doctrines  of  prelacy.  Let  him 
begin  to  rave  about  apostolic  succession,  divine  right,  pos- 
tures, attitudes,  "wax  candles,  altar-cloths,  chaplets,  crosses, 
crucifixes,  and  mummery  of  all  kinds," — and  can  it  be  diffi- 
cult to  conjecture  what  place  the  great  doctrine  of  Christ 
and  him  crucified  must  have  in  the  teachings  of  such  a 
ministry,  or  what  efficacy  it  may  have  in  winning  souls  to 
Christ  by  the  preaching  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus? 
So  it  was  with  the  ancient  church.  "  No  one  can  read  the 
writings  of  the  fathers,  without  feeling  that  they  gradually 
became  more  intent  on  the  circumstantials  of  religion  than 
on  the  essence  of  it;  more  solicitous  about  the  modes  in 
which  religious  duties  should  be  performed,  than  about  the 
spirit  of  them.  It  is  all  over  with  religion  when  this  is  the 
case." 

But  how  different  from  all  this  was  the  ministry  of 
Christ  and  of  the  apostles.  Armed  with  the  panoply  of 
heaven, — the  word  of  God  alone,  the  sword  of  the  Spirit, — 
the  first  promulgators  of  the  Christian  religion  went  forth, 
conquering  and  to  conquer.  By  the  simple  instrumentality 
of  the  word,  mighty  through  God  to  the  pulling  down  of 
strong  holds,  they  quickly  spread  the  triumphs  of  the  cross 
through  every  land,  and  carried  their  conquests  up  even  to 
the  very  throne  of  the  Cossars.  Be  ours  a  religion  that 
creates  and  enjoys  such  a  ministry. 

12.  This  primitive  system  serves  to  make  an  efficient 
laity. 

Instead  of  excluding  them  from  the  concerns  of  the 
church,  like  many  other  forms  of  church  government,  and 
requiring  of  them  chiefly  to  attend  to  their  forms  of  wor- 
ship, and  pay  their  taxes,  this  primitive  system  of  ecclesi- 
astical polity  devolves  upon  the  members  of  the  church  the 
duties  of  discipline,  and  the  care  of  the  church.  It  trains 
them  to  live  and  to  care  for  the  interests  of  religion.  It 
quickens  their  graces,  by  calling  them  into  habitual  exer- 
cise.     It   gives   an   efficient   practical   character   to    their 


236  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

religion.  Look  to  the  Moravian  brethren,  or  to  the 
churches  of  America  which  have  the  closest  resemblance 
to  this  primitive  organization.  Observe  them  in  the  pri- 
vate walks  of  life.  Look  at  their  efficiency  in  missionary- 
operations,  their  noble  charities,  and  their  generous  labors 
in  every  department  of  Christian  benevolence.  They  are 
not  merely  devout  worshippers  within  the  church,  and 
decent  moralists  without,  but  notoriously,  eminently,  intelli- 
gent, efficient,  liberal.  They  serve  God  as  well  as  worship 
him.  Not  content  merely  to  cultivate  the  private  virtues 
of  the  Christian,  the  laity  have  the  habit  of  counselling  and 
acting  for  the  church  and  for  their  fellow-men,  which  gives 
to  their  religion  an  enterprising,  practical,  business  charac- 
ter. An  absolute  government,  on  the  other  hand,  whether 
civil  or  religious,  which  separates  the  people  from  all 
participation  in  its  administration,  forms  in  them  the  habit 
of  living  and  caring  only  for  themselves ;  and  the  result  is 
a  retiring,  negative  character,  a  servile,  selfish  spirit.  The 
impress  of  a  despotic  government  upon  the  character  of  a 
people  is  as  clear  as  the  light  of  the  sun  in  the  heavens; 
and,  so  long  as  like  causes  produce  similar  effects,  the 
results  of  a  spiritual  despotism  may  be  seen  in  an  inactive, 
inefficient  laity.  Noble  examples  to  the  contrary  there 
may  be,  just  as  in  all  the  private  walks  of  life  there  may 
be  individuals  of  generous  impulses  and  lofty  aspirations, 
who  burst  away  from  the  thraldom  of  their  condition,  and 
rise  superior  to  the  enervating,  depressing  influences, 
which  act  disastrously  upon  men  of  ordinary  minds.  But 
the  general  character  of  any  people  is  moulded  and  formed 
by  the  government,  civil  and  religious,  under  which  they 
live. 

Of  drones,  monks,  sinecurists,  and  cloistered  Christians 
even,  content  in  seclusion  to  cultivate  merely  the  retired 
virtues  of  private  life,  careless  of  a  world  lying  in  wicked- 
ness, so  they  may  themselves  but  safely  be  raised  to  heaven 
at  last, — of  all  such  the  church  has  had  enough.     But  the 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  237 

true  church  of  Christ  demands  men  who  shall  not  foro-ct  to 
do  good,  and  to  communicate  to  all  men  as  they  may  have 
opportunity. 156  fJer  present  emergencies  call  for  working- 
men,  in  the  best  sense  of  the  phrase ;  men  who  shall  live, 
not  unto  themselves  but  for  their  Lord  and  Master,  and  for 
the  souls  which  he  has  redeemed  by  his  own  blood.  And 
that  is  the  best  religious  system,  which  trains,  in  the  hap- 
piest manner  and  in  greatest  numbers,  such  working-men 
for  the  church  of  Christ. 

"  When  every  good  Christian,  thoroughly  acquainted 
with  all  those  glorious  privileges  of  sanctification  and 
adoption,  which  render  him  more  sacred  than  any  dedi- 
cated altar  or  element,  shall  be  restored  to  his  right  in  the 
church,  and  not  excluded  from  such  place  of  spiritual 
government  as  his  Christian  abilities  and  his  approved 
good  life  in  the  eye  and  testimony  of  the  church  shall 
prefer  him  to,  this  and  nothing  sooner  will  open  his  eyes 
to  a  wise  and  true  valuation  of  himself,  which  is  so  requi- 
site and  high  a  point  of  Christianity,  and  will  stir  him  up 

1^6  Tile  superior  liberality  and  enterprise  of  those  religious  denomina- 
tions now  under  consideration,  is  noticed  by  a  correspondent  in  a  late 
number  of  the  Episcopal  Recorder. 

"  O,  that  we  had  the  zeal  of  some  other  denominations  of  Christians, 
against  whom  we  too  often  boast  ourselves,  but  whose  liberality  puts  our 
penuriousness  to  open  shame.  It  is  but  a  few  days  since  a  single  firm  in 
this  city,  consisting  of  three  members,  gave  ^15,000  to  sustain  the  Presby- 
terian Theological  Seminary  of  New  York,  yet  Bishop  IMcIlvaine,  wanting 
little  more  than  this  same  sum,  to  relieve  one  of  the  noblest  of  the  insti- 
tutions of  our  church,  has  to  beg  from  city  to  city,  from  rich  to  poor,  and 
is  at  this  moment  in  anxious  suspense  whether  his  mission  may  not  fail, 
because  men  are  lovers  of  their  own  selves,  instead  of  being  constrained 
by  the  love  of  Christ  to  give  freely  of  what  they  have  so  freely  received. 
It  may  be  stated  as  a  humiliating  fact,  showing  the  low  estate  of  our 
church,  that  no  sum  above  ,1^250  has  yet  been  received  from  any  one  in  aid 
of  Kenyon  College,  though  numbers  reside  in  this  city  who  could  cancel 
the  debt  themselves,  and  never  feel  the  loss  of  so  trifling  a  sum.  When 
shall  we  see  men  awakening  to  a  sense  of  their  responsibility  and  their 
stewardship  to  God  ?  When  shall  we  hear  them  exclaim,  with  Zaccheus, 
'Lord,  the  half  of  my  goods  I  give  to  the  poor.'  " — Epis.  Rec,  Oct.  21, 
1843. 


238  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

to  walk  worthy  the  honorable  and  grave  employment 
wherewith  God  and  the  church  hath  dignified  him ;  not 
fearing  lest  he  should  meet  with  some  outward  holy  thing 
in  religion,  which  his  lay  touch  or  presence  might  profane, 
but  lest  something  unholy  from  within  his  own  heart 
should  dishonor  and  profane  in  himself  that  priestly 
unction  and  clergy-right  whereto  Christ  hath  entitled  him. 
Then  would  the  congregation  of  the  Lord  soon  recover  the 
true  likeness  and  visage  of  what  she  is  indeed,  a  holy 
generation,  a  royal  priesthood,  a  saintly  communion,  the 
household  and  city  of  God.  And  this  I  hold  to  be  another 
considerable  reason  why  the  functions  of  church  govern- 
ment ought  to  be  free  and  open  to  any  Christian  man, 
though  never  so  laic,  if  his  capacity,  his  faith,  and  prudent 
demeanor  commend  him.  And  this  the  apostles  warrant 
us  to  do."  157 

13.  Such  a  system  of  religion  as  that  we  have  been 
contemplating,  harmonizes  with,  and  fosters  our  free  insti- 
tutions. 

There  is  a  harmony  between  government  and  religion. 
There  is  a  mutual  relation  and  adaptation  between  our 
free,  republican  government  and  a  popular  ecclesiastical 
organization,  like  that  of  the  apostolical  and  primitive 
church.  Such  a  system  harmonizes  with  our  partialities 
and  prejudices;  it  coincides  with  oar  national  usages;  it  is 
congenial  to  all  our  civil  institutions.  This  is  a  considera- 
tion of  great  importance.  It  is  enough  of  itself  to  outweigh, 
a  thousand-fold,  all  that  prelacy  ever  dreamed  of  in  its  own 
favor.  Indeed,  the  spiritual  despotism  of  that  system,  its 
absolute  monarchical  powers,  constitute  one  strong  objec- 
tion to  it.  It  is  the  religion  of  despots  and  tyrants.  Such 
the  papal  form  of  it  has  always  been;  and  such,  we  cannot 
doubt,  is  still  one  inherent  characteristic  of  high,  exclusive 
Episcopacy,  however  it  may  be  modified  by  circumstances. 
The  church  of  England,  from  the  time  of  its  establishment, 
1"  Milton's  Prose  Works,  Vol.  I,  p.  167. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  239 

says  Macaula}^  "  continued  to  be,  for  more  than  one  liun- 
dred  and  fifty  years,  the  servile  handmaid  of  monarchy, 
the  steady  enemy  of  public  liberty."  i^^  James,  the  tyrant 
of  that  ag-e,  uniformly  silenced  every  plea  in  behalf  of  the 
Puritans,  with  the  significant  exclamation,  "  No  bishop  no 
king."  So  indispensable  is  the  hierarchy  to  a  monarchy. 
But  in  a  free  republic  it  is  a  monstrous  anomaly. 

On  the  other  hand,  be  it  remembered,  "the  New  Testa- 
ment is  emphatically  a  republican  book.  It  sanctions  no 
privileged  orders ;  it  gives  no  exclusive  rights.  All,  who 
imbibe  its  spirit  and  obey  its  precepts,  are  recognized  as 
equals ;  children  of  the  same  Father ;  brethren  and  sisters 
in  Christ,  and  heirs  to  a  common  inheritance.  In  the  spirit 
of  these  kind  and  endearing  relations,  the  first  Christians 
formed  themselves  into  little  republican  communities, 
acknowledging  no  head  but  Jesus  Christ,  and  regulating 
all  their  concerns  by  mutual  consultation  and  a  popular 
vote  of  the  brotherhood.  In  these  distinct  and  independent 
societies  was  realized  for  the  first  time  in  this  world  the 
perfect  idea  of  civil  and  religious  liberty. 

"  The  Puritans  imbibed  the  same  spirit,  and  derived 
their  principles  from  the  same  pure  source  of  light,  of 
holiness  and  freedom.  They  modeled  their  churches 
after  the  primitive  form,  and  founded  them  on  the  basis 
of  entire  independence  and  equality  of  rights.  Twice  in 
their  native  land  had  they  saved  the  British  constitution 
from  being  crushed  by  the  usurpations  of  the  Stuarts  ;  and 
Hume,  who  was  never  backward  to  reproach  both  their 
character  and  their  principles,  is  compelled  to  acknowledge 
that  what  of  liberty  breathes  in  that  constitution  is  to  be 
ascribed  to  the  influence  of  the  Puritans.i-^    These  were  the 

158  Miscellanies,  Boston  ed.,  I,  p.  249. 

159  "  So  absolute,  indeed,  was  the  authority  of  the  crown, that  the  precious 
spark  of  liberty  had  been  kindled  and  was  preserved  by  the  Puritans  5  and 
it  was  to  this  sect,  whose  principles  appear  so  frivolous,  and  habits  so 
ridiculous,  that  the  English  owe  the  whole  freedom  of  their  constitution." 
Again,  "  It  was  only  during  the  next  generation  that  the  noble  principles  of 


240  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

men  who  settled  New-England.  They  came  here  bearing 
in  their  bosoms  the  sacred  love  of  liberty  and  religion;  and 
ere  they  left  the  little  bark  that  had  borne  them  across  the 
ocean,  they  formed  themselves  'into  a  civil  body  politic,' 
having  for  its  basis  this  fundamental  principle,  that  they 
should  he  ruled  hy  the  majority.  Here  is  brought  out  the 
grand  idea  of  a  free,  elective  government.  Here  is  the 
germ  of  that  tree  of  liberty  which  now  rears  its  lofty  top  to 
the  heavens,  spreading  its  branches  over  the  length  and 
breadth  of  our  land,  and  under  whose  shade  seventeen 
millions  of  freemen  are  reposing.  The  spirit  of  all  our 
free,  civil,  and  religious  institutions  was  in  the  breasts  of 
our  pilgrim  fathers. 

"  How  striking  is  the  resemblance  between  the  churches 
planted  by  the  apostles,  and  those  established  in  this  land 
by  our  venerated  fathers  ?  Well  may  we  believe  them, 
when  they  say,  that  the  primitive,  apostolic  churches  were 
the  only  pattern  they  had  in  their  eye  in  organizing  the 
churches  of  New-England.  They  certainly  well  under- 
stood their  pattern,  and  were  singularly  happy  in  imitating 
it."  160 

"Many  more  graceful  and  more  winning  forms  of 
human  nature  there  have  been,  and  are,  and  shall  be; 
many  men,  many  races  there  are,  and  have  been,  and  shall 
be,  of  more  genial  dispositions,  more  tasteful  accomplish- 
ments, a  quicker  eye  for  the  beautiful  of  art  and  nature,  less 
disagreeably  absorbed,  less  gloomily  careful  and  troubled 
about  the  mighty  interests  of  the  spiritual  being,  or  of  the 

commonwealth But  where,  in  the  long  series  of  ages 

that  furnish  the  matter  of  history,  was  there  ever  one, — 
where  one.,  better  fitted  by  the  possession  of  the  highest 
traits  of  man,  to  do  the  noblest  work  of  man ;  better  fitted 

liberty  took  root,  and  spreading  themselves  under  the  shelter  of  Puritanical 
absurdities, became  fashionable  among  the  people." — Hume's  Eng.,Yo\.Y , 
pp.  183,  469. 
160  Hawes's  Tribute  to  the  Memory  of  the  PilgrimS;  pp.  61—63,  83,  84. 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  241 

to  consummate  and  establish  the  Reformation, — to  save 
the  English  constitution,  at  its  last  gasp,  from  the  fate  of 
other  European  constitutions,  and  prepare,  on  the  granite 
and  iced  mountain  summits  of  the  new  world,  a  still  better 
rest  for  a  still  better  libert}^  ?" 

In  conclusion,  we  would  acknowledge,  with  devout  grati- 
tude to  God,  the  rich  inheritance  which  we  have  received 
from  our  puritan  forefathers,  in  the  religious  institutions 
which  they  have  transmitted  to  us. 

They  have  given  us  a  religion,  more  allied;  both  in  spirit 
and  in  form,  to  scriptural  Christianity,  than  any  other  that 
has  ever  arisen  upon  the  world, — a  religion,  more  abundant 
in  blessings,  and  more  to  be  prized  than  any  other;   a 
religion,  from  which  the  whole  American  system,  with  all 
its  institutions,  social,  civil  and  religious,  has  arisen.     Our 
pilgrim  fathers,  while  at  anchor  off  our  coast,  and  before 
they  set  foot  upon  these  shores,  after  solemn  prayer  to  the 
God  of  nations,  entered  mutually  into  a  social  compact,  on 
board  the  Mayflower,  to  establish  a  government  here  "for 
the  glory  of  God  and  the  advancement  of  the  Christian 
faith."     With  this  intent  4,hey  landed  and  entered  upon 
their  great  work,  as  if  conscious   of   their  high'  destiny, 
reared  up  of  God  to  establish  and  extend  the  principles  of 
civil  and  religious  freedom  which  they  had  so  nobly  defended 
in  their  father-land.     There  they  had  freely  bled,  and  suf- 
fered the  loss  of  all  things  in  their  inflexible  adherence  to 
these  principles.     Harassed  and  wearied,  but  not  dismayed, 
by  their  continual  bonds,  imprisonments,  and  persecutions 
at  home,  and  by  their  exile  abroad,  they  resolved  to  seek 
an  asylum  in  the  wilderness  of  the  new  world,  where,  in 
peaceful  seclusion,  they  might  establish  a  government  for 
the  glory  of  God  and  the  advancement  of  the  Christian 
faith.    The  Bible  was  their  statute-book;  and  their  religion, 
that  primitive  Christianity  which  God  gave  to  the  world 
through  the  medium  of  our  Lord  and  his  apostles.     In 
21 


242  THE    PRmiTIVE    CHURCH. 

fulfilment  of  their  design,  their  first  care  was  to  set  up  the 
tabernacle  of  the  Lord  in  this  wilderness.  They  erected 
the  church,  and  fast  by  this  the  school-house;  then  the 
court-house,  the  academy,  the  college,  while  yet  they  were 
of  one  faith  and  one  name.  No  other  form  of  religion  was 
known,  in  this  land  of  the  pilgrims,  until  the  great  principles 
of  the  American  system  were  developed,  and  established 
here  by  our  puritan  forefathers. 

The  truth  is,  they  were  no  ordinary  men.  They  lived 
for  no  ordinary  purpose.  They  were  the  most  remarkable 
men  which  the  world  has  ever  produced.  They  lived  for 
a  nobler  end,  for  a  higher  destiny  than  any  that  have  ever 
lived.  These  are  the  men  to  whom  New-England  owes 
her  religion,  with  all  the  blessings,  social,  civil,  and 
literary,  that  follow  in  its  train.  These  are  the  venerable 
men  whose  blood  still  flows  in  our  veins,  and  into  whose 
inheritance  we  have  entered.  Peace  to  their  silent  shades. 
Fragrant  as  the  breath  of  morning  be  their  memory.  The 
winds  of  two  centuries  have  swept  over  their  graves.  The 
effacing  hand  of  time  has  well  nigh  worn  away  the  perish- 
able monuments  which  may  have  marked  the  spot  where 
sleeps  their  honored  dust.  But  they  still  live.  They  live 
in  the  immortal  principles  which  they  taught; — in  the 
enduring  institutions  which  they  established.  They  live 
in  the  remembrance  of  a  grateful  posterity;  and  they  will 
live  on,  through  all  time,  in  the  gratitude  of  unborn  gene- 
rations, who,  in  long  succession,  shall  rise  up  and  call 
them  blessed.  And  shall  we,  "who  keep  the  graves,  and 
bear  the  names,  and  boast  the  blood"  of  these  men,  disown 
their  church,  or  cast  out  as  evil,  and  revile  their  religion  ? 
No;  by  the  memory  of  these  noble  men;  by  their  holy 
lives,  their  heavenly  principles,  their  sacred  institutions; 
by  the  sustaining  strength  which  they  themselves  are  still 
giving  to  our  own  freedom,  and  to  the  great  cause  of  civil 
and  religious  liberty  throughout  the  earth, — let  us  never 
give  up  the  religion  of  our  forefathers.     No,  never;  never! 


EQUALITY    OF    BISHOPS    AND    PRESBYTERS.  243 

But  we  have  seen  of  late  years  several  young  men,  of 
a  certain  cast  of  character,  annually  straying  away  from 
the  fold  of  their  fathers,  and  coldly  rejecting  their  own 
religious  birthright,  in  exchange  for  a  more  imposing  ritual, 
encumbered  with  a  mass  of  anti-scriptural  ceremonials,  and 
withal,  sadly  deficient  in  the  means  of  spiritual  improve- 
ment. And  other  young  aspirants  there  may  be,  recreant 
to  the  faith  of  their  fathers,  and  eager  to  follow  in  the  foot- 
steps of  their  apostatizing  predecessors.  Well,  be  it  so.  If 
there  be  any  who  find  themselves  seized  with  a  desire  to 
forsake  the  altar  and  communion  of  their  fathers,  and  to 
consign  their  sainted  ancestors,  together  with  their  kindred 
according  to  the  flesh,  and  their  brethren  in  Christ,  with 
whom  they  have  often  sat  at  the  table  of  the  Lord, — the 
very  lambs  of  the  flock  it  may  be,  whom  they  themselves 
have  gathered  into  the.  fold  of  Christ,  and  sought  gently  to 
lead  in  the  path  of  life, — if,  I  say,  they  can  now  leave  all  these, 
with  "cool  atrocity,"  to  "  unco venan ted  mercy," — if  such  be 
the  humor  of  their  mind,  be  it  so ;  but  if  they  have  yet  an 
ear  to  hear,  there  is  a  voice  of  gentle  admonition  to  which 
they  do  well  to  give  heed.  From  the  dying  lips  of  puritan 
ancestry  it  calls  to  them  in  tones  of  kind  but  earnest 
remonstrance,  "  We  do  earnestly  testify  that  if  any  who 
are  given  to  change,  do  rise  up  to  unhinge  the  well 
established  churches  in  this  land,  it  will  be  the  duty  and 
interest  of  the  churches  to  examine  whether  the  men  of 
this  trespass  are  more  prayerful,  more  zealous,  more  pa- 
tient, more  heavenly,  more  universally  conscientious,  and 
harder  students  and  belter  scholars,  and  more  willing  to  be 
informed  and  advised,  than  those  great  and  good  men  who 
left  unto  the  churches  what  they  now  enjoy.  If  they  be 
not  so,  it  will  be  wisdom  to  forbear  pulling  down,  with 
their  own  hands,  the  houses  of  God  which  were  built  by 
their  wiser  fathers,  until  they  have  better  satisfaction."^^'* 

J^4  Rev.  John  Higginson  and  Rev.  William  Hubbard. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

RISE  OF  EPISCOPACY. 

At  what  period  of  time  the  republican  principle,  in  the 
church,  hegan  to  give  place  to  the  aristocratic  and  monarchi- 
cal element,  is  not  distinctly  known.  It  is,  however,  ad- 
mitted by  Dean  Waddington,  "  that  the  spirit"  of  religion 
and  the  first  government  of  the  church  w^as  popular;" 
and  that  "  the  Episcopal  government  was  clearly  not  yet 
established,"  at  the  close  of  the  first  century  when  Clement 
wrote.  Riddle  makes  essentially  the  sarrie  concession; 
and  with  him  many  other  Episcopalians.  Such,  indeed, 
seems  to  be  the  acknowledged  opinion  of  that  class  of  this 
denomination  who  disclaim  the  doctrine  of  the  divine  right 
of  Episcopacy. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  is  generally  conceded  that  the  pop- 
ular form  of  government  in  the  churchy  began  gradually 
to  change  into  one  more  despotic,  soon  after  the  age  of  the 
apostles.  Those  changes  in  the  organization  of  the  apos- 
tolical churches,  which  finally  gave  rise  to  the  Episcopal 
system,  began,  in  the  opinion  of  some,  as  early  as  the 
first  h"alf  of  the  second  centiiry.  Many  others,  with  greater 
probability,  refer  the  commencement  of  the  transition  to 
the  second  half  of  the  same  century.  Nothing  appears  in 
history  to  define  with  precision  the  period  of  the  change 
in  question.  It  was  doubtless  different  in  different  churches. 
Springing  gradually,  and  almost  imperceptibly,  from  many 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  245 

causes,  it  was  unnoticed,  or  left  unrecorded  in  the  scanty 
records  of  that  early  period  which  still  remain  unto  us. 

The  Episcopal  hierarchy  had  its  origin  undoubtedly  in 
what  may  be  denominated  the  parochial  system.  Tliis 
term  denotes  the  intermediate  state  of  the  church,  in  its 
transition  from  the  primitive,  apostolical  form,  to  that  of 
the  diocesan  confederacy.  The  churches,  in  the  principal 
towns,  gradually  gained  a  controlling  influence  over  those 
which  were  planted  in  the  country  round  about.  And  the 
clergy  of  these  central  churches  came,  by  degrees,  into  simi- 
lar relations  to  their  brethren  in  the  country.  So  that  both 
minister,  and  people  of  the  city  became,  through  the  opera- 
tion of  various  causes,  the  centre  of  influence  and  power 
over  the  feeble  churches  that  gradually  sprang  up  in  the 
country  around.  The  church  of  the  metropolis  became,  in 
the  quaint  style  of  church  history,  the  mother-church,  to 
smaller,  dependent  fraternities  in  the  country;  and  the 
clerical  head  of  this  church,  the  principal  man  among  his 
brethren,  the  presiding  genius  of  their  assemblies  and 
councils.  This  accidental  ascendency  of  the  central  church, 
and  of  its  clergy,  led  on  the  rapid  development  of  the 
Episcopal  system  :  and,  Anally,  ended  in  the  overthrow  of 
the  popular  government  of  the  primitive  church. 

This  chapter,  therefore,  will  be  devoted  to  a  considera- 
tion of  the  causes  which  gave,  both  to  the  churches  and  to 
the  bishops  of  the  principal  cities,  that  increasing  ascendency 
and  power,  from  which  we  trace  the  rise  of  Episcopacy. 

I.  Of  the  ascendency  of  the  churches  in  the  cities  over 
those  of  the  country. 

The  gospel  was  first  preached  in  large  cities  and  towns, 
such  as  Jerusalem,  Antioch,  Ephesus,  Corinth,  and  the 
like.  Here  were  the  earliest  churches  founded.  These 
churches  now  became  central  points  of  effort  and  influence 
for  the  extension  of  Christianity  in  the  region  round  about. 
21^ 


246  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

The  apostles  themselves,  sometimes  made  such  missionary 
excursions  into  the  neighboring  towns  and  villages,  Acts 
8:  25;  9:  32.  Similar  efforts  were  doubtless  continued 
and  greatly  extended,  by  the  pastors  and  converts  of  those 
central  churches.  The  promptings  of  Christian  benevo- 
lence naturally  directed  them  to  such  efforts.  Clement  repre- 
sents the  apostles  to  have  established  churches,  in  this 
manner,  both  in  the  cities  and  in  the  country. 

The  early  Christians  were  often  dispersed  abroad,  also, 
by  persecution ;  and,  like  the  first  Christians,  Acts,  8:  4, 
"  went  every  where  preaching  the  word." 

Strangers  and  visiters  in  the  principal  cities,  where  the 
gospel  was  preached,  also  became  frequent  converts  to 
Christ,  and  returned  home  to-  make  known  his  gospel,  as 
they  might  have  opportunity  and  ability  in  the  places 
where  they  resided. 

Whatever  the  means  may  have  been,  it  is  an  acknowl- 
edged historical  fact,  that  the  Christian  religion  continued 
to  spread  with  wonderful  rapidity  throughout  the  first  cen- 
tury ;  and  that  by  the  close  of  this  period  it  had  pervaded, 
not  only  the  principal  cities,  but  the  country  also,  in 
many  provinces  of  the  Roman  empire.  Pliny,  A.  D.,  103 
or  104,  in  the  remote  province  of  Bithynia,  complains  that 
"  this  contagious  superstition  was  not  confined  to  the  cities 
only,  but  had  spread  its  infection  through  the  country 
villages."!  These  new  presbyters  in  the  surrounding 
country,  while  yet  few  and  feeble,  became  of  course  mem- 
bers of  the  neighboring  church.  The  parent  church  be- 
came a  great  parish  spreading  out  over  an  indefinite  extent 
of  country,  and  having  several  subordinate  branches  in 
connection  with  it,  more  or  less  dependent,  over  which  it 
exerted  a  sustaining  and  controlling  influence. 

.  For  a  time.  Dr.  Campbell  supposes  that  these  converts  in 
the  villages  received  pastoral  instruction,  and  the  elements 

1  Ep.  Lib.  10,  97. 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY-.  247 

of  the  eucharist,  from  persons  sent  out  for  that  purpose 
from  the  city ;  but  that  all  continued  to  "come  into  the 
city  to  worship.  Such  also  is  the  representation  of  Justin 
Martyr,  who  says,  "that  on  the  day  which  was  called 
Sunday,  all  that  live  in  the  city  and  in  the  countrij  come 
together  in  the  same  place,"-  for  religious  worship. 

When,  in  process  of  time,  it  became  expedient  for  Christian 
converts  in  the  country  to  hold  separate  places  of  worship, 
these  new  organizations  took  the  form  of  the  parent  church, 
and  still  looked  unto  that  for  instruction  and  .support  as 
they  might  need.  They  had,  indeed,  a  striking  analogy  to 
the  chapels  of  ease  in  England ;  having  a  similar  depend- 
ence upon  the  mother-church.  This  dependence  gave  rise 
to  a  gradual  connection  and  coalition,  between  the  churches 
in  the  country,  and  the  central  church  in  the  city.  In  this 
connection  and  coalition,  between  the  original  church  and 
the  smaller  ones  that  sprang  up  around  it,  began  that 
change  in  the  original  organization  of  the  apostolical 
churches  which  gave  rise  to  the  Episcopal  system;  and,  in 
the  end,  totally  subverted  the  primitive  simplicity  and  free- 
dom in  which  the  churches  were  at  first  founded.  This 
dependence  and  consequent  coalition  was,  originally,  only 
the  result  of  various  natural  causes  and  local  circumstances 
which  claim  a  more  specific  enumeration. 

1.  The  churches  in  the  country  v/ere  only  branches  of 
the  parent  stock,  and  owned  a  filial  relation  to  the  mother- 
church. 

2.  They  received  their  first  spiritual  teachers  and  pastors 
from  this  church,  who  would  naturally  retain  their  attach- 
ment to  the  same,  and  use  their  influence  to  promote  the 
union  of  the  church  to  which  they  went,  with  that  from 
which  they  came. 

3.  The  connection  between  the  country  and  the  city,  in 
the  ordinary  course  of  business,  had  its  influence  in  bring- 

2  ApoL,  c.  67,  p.  83. 


248  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ing  the  churches  in  the  country  into  connection  with  that 
in  the  city. 

4.  The  persecutions,  and  consequent  distress  which  came 
upon  the  churches,  brought  them  into  closer  connection 
one  with  another. 

5.  The  city  was  the  centre  of  political  influence  and 
power,  for  the  government  and  protection  of  the  coun- 
try. This  consideration  had  its  influence  in  promoting 
a  similar  relation  between  the  churches  in  the  city,  and 
those  in  the  country. — The  people  had  long  been  subject 
to  the  civil  authority  which  was  concentrated  in  the  city ; 
and,  on  this  account,  the  more  readily  yielded  to  a  similar 
control  from  the  same  quarter  over  the  affairs  of  the 
church. 

6.  The  church  itself  was  deservedly  the  object  of  re- 
spect. It  was  founded,  it  may  be,  by  one  of  the  apostles, 
and  still  enjoyed  the  ministry  of  a  successor  placed  at  a 
short  remove  from  them,  and  to  whom  they  looked  for 
counsel  and  support. 

"An  ancient  custom  obtained,  of  attributing  to  those 
churches  which  had  been  founded  by  the  apostles,  a  supe- 
rior degree  of  honor,  and  a  more  exalted  dignity.  On 
which  account  it  was  for  the  most  part  usual,  when  any 
dispute  arose  respecting  principles  or  tenets,  for  the  opinion 
of  these  churches  to  be  asked ;  as,  also,  for  those  who  en- 
tered into  discussion  of  any  matters  connected  with  re- 
ligion, to  refer,  in  support  of  their  positions,  to  the  voice  of 
the  apostolic  churches.  We  may,  therefore,  hence,  very 
readily  perceive  the  reason  which,  in  cases  of  doubt  and 
controversy,  caused  the  Christians  of  the  West  to  have 
recourse  to  the  church  of  Eome ;  those  of  Africa,  to  that  of 
Alexandria ;  and  those  of  Asia,  to  that  of  Antioch  for  their 
opinion ;  and  which,  also,  occasioned  these  opinions  to  be, 
not  unfrequently  regarded  in  the  light  of  laws,  namely, 
that  these  churches  had  been  planted,  reared  up  and  regu- 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  249 

laled,  either  by  the  hand  or  under   the  immediate  care  of 
some  one,  or  more  of  the  apostles  themselves. "^ 

7.  The  city  church  was  comparatively  rich  and  power- 
ful;  and  could  administer  to  the  wants  of  the  feeble 
churches  as  they  might  need.  For  this  reason,  especially 
in  times  of  distress  and  persecution,  they  clung  as  closely 
as  possible  to  the  parent  church. 

8.  Protection  and  aid  from  the  civil  authority  was 
chiefly  to  be  sought  through  the  same  medium.  The 
minister  of  the  city  could  apply  in  their  behalf  to  the  Eo- 
man  governors  who  resided  there.  Or  if  a  direct  applica- 
tion were  inexpedient,  there  were  still  many  ways  and 
means,  by  which  to  operate  secretly  upon  the  magistrates, 
and  their  subordinate  officers,-  for  the  advantage  of  the 
churches  in  the  country.  Christian  converts  were  not  un- 
frequently  entrusted  with  some  civil  office,  in  which  they 
could  be  instrumental  in  administering  to  the  aid  of  their 
brethren  in  the  country. 

Thus,  in  various  ways,  the  churches  in  the  large  cities, 
in  process  of  time,  gathered  about  them  several  smaller 
churches  in  the  vicinity,  over  which  they  extended  their 
guardianship  and  care.  The  clergy  of  the  central  churches 
had  a  controlling  influence  over  those  in  the  neighborhood, 
which  was  conceded  to  them  by  common  consent;  and 
which,  in  reality,  was  not  at  first  oppressive,  but  beneficial 
to  the  subordinate  churches.  It  was,,  however,  a  silent 
surrender  of  their  original  and  inherent  right  as  inde- 
pendent churches ;  and  •  led  on  an  entire  change  in  the 
ecclesiastical  polity  of  the  primitive  church,  as  established 
by  the  apostles. 

The  above  representations  disclose  the  true  origin  of  that 
ecclesiastical  aristocracy  which  succeeded  to  the  popular 
government  of  the  apostolical  churches.  They  exhibit 
the  rise  of  the  diocesan  form  of  government,  not  as  based 

3  Mosheim,  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  II;  §  21. 


250  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

on  mere  hypothesis,  but  as  the  result  of  the  mutual  rela- 
tions of  the  churches  in  the  country  to  that  in  the  city. 
The  church  of  the  metropolis  gradually  spread  itself 
out  as  an  extensive  parish  over  the  adjacent  territory. 
And  the  bishop  of  this  city  became,  virtually,  the  bishop 
over  the  same  extent  of  country.  "  Was  it  not  natural," 
says  Planck,  after  alluding  to  many  of  the  circumstances 
above-mentioned,  "  w^as  it  not  natural,  and  according 
to  the  ordinary  course  of  things,  to  make  a  distinction 
between  the  bishop  of  the  city,  and  the  other  clergy? 
Would  not  they  themselves,  cheerfully  make  the  distinc- 
tion, and  give  him  special  tokens  of  their  consideration? 
Would  they  not  accost  him  with  peculiar  respect;  and  by 
silent  consent,  give  him  the  pre-eminence  ?  And  would 
he  not,  on  the  other  hand,  requite  all  this  by  his  manifold 
services  ?  Hence  arose  those  new  relations  which  laid  the 
foundation  for  the  metropolitan  system."^ 

Throughout  the  second  and  third  centuries,  there  was 
no  established  law  or  rule,  binding  the  smaller  churches  in 
a  coalition  with  the  greater,  or  bringing  them  into  subjec- 
tion to  it.  It  was  wholly  a  conventional  arrangement,  a 
matter  of  expediency  and  convenience,  resulting  from  vari- 
ous circumstances  that  have  already  been  detailed.  But 
that  which  was  first  conceded  voluntarily,  was  afterwards 
claimed  by  right.  Conventional  usage  became  established 
law ;  the  controlling  influence  of  the  bishop,  an  official 
prerogative ;  and  thus,  in  the  end,  a  diocesan  form  of  gov- 
ernment was  settled  upon  the  church. 

Siegel  and  Ziegler  have  given  two  examples  from 
Fuchs,  in  illustration  of  these  relations  between  the  parent 
church  and  those  of  the  country  adjacent.  It  appears 
that,  at  the  council  of  Nice,  a  question  arose  between  the 
bishops  of  that  city  and  of  Nicomedia,  respecting  the  juris- 

4  Gesellschafts-Verfass.,  1,  pp.  82,  83.  Comp.  also,  546—562,  respecting 
this  system  at  a  later  period. 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  251 

diction  of  Basilinopolis,  a  small  city  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Nice.  This  city  was  originally  a  small  village,  but  had 
so  increased  as  to  be  invested  by  Justinian  with  the  rights 
and  privileges  of  a  city,  and  as  such,  belonged  to  the  juris- 
diction of  the  metropolitan  of  Nicomedia.  But,  as  a  vil- 
lage adjacent  to  Nice,  according  to  the  views  above  stated, 
it  was  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  bishop  of  Nice,  who 
had  himself  ordained  the  presbyter  of  Basilinopolis  as  a 
bishop  in  accordance  with  the  old  order  of  things,  and  in 
direct  violation  of  the  metropolitan  rights  of  the  bishop  of 
Nicomedia,  who  alone  claimed  the  right  to  ordain  bishops 
in  his  own  province.  The  only  defence  which  the  bishop 
of  Nice  could  offer,  was  to  claim  jurisdiction  over  it,  on 
the  ground  of  its  relation  to  Nice ;  having  formally  be- 
longed to  the  precincts  of  that  city  as  a  neighboring  and 
dependent  church.  The  instance  goes  to  show  that  such 
relations  had  existed,  and  were  still  claimed  as  valid,  even 
under  the  metropolitan  system  then  in  force. 

The  second  example  is  derived  from  the  region  of  the 
Mareotis,  near  Alexandria.  In  this  whole  extent  of  country 
so  late  as  the  fourth  century,  there  was  no  bishop,  or  rural 
bishop,  chorepiscopus  ;  but  only  presbyters,  who  were  under 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  bishop  of  Alexandria;  and  so  jeal- 
ous was  he  of  this  prerogative,  that  he  had  refused,  for 
this  length  of  time,  any  other  ministry  to  the  churches  of 
the  Mareotis  than  that  of  presbyters. 

The  same  state  of  things  is  apparent  from  the  relations 
of  the  presbyters  in  the  city  to  the  bishop,  in  contrast 
with  those  of  presbyters  in  the  country.  When,  in  process 
of  time,  several  distinct  churches  were  found  in  a  given 
city,  the  presbyters  of  these  churches  refused  themselves 
to  acknowledge  a  subordination  to  the  bishop  similar  to 
that  of  the  presbyters  in  the  country.  They  claimed  an 
equality  with  him.  They  had  elected  him  from  their  own 
number ;  and  they  continued  to  regard  him  only  as  primus 


252  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

inter  pares ;  and,  as  ministers  in  the  metropolis,  claimed 
precedence  over  those  in  the  country.  Thus  in  the  letter 
of  the  Arians  to  Alexander,  the  bishop  and  all  the  clergy 
of  Alexandria  first  affix  their  signature.  Then  follows 
that  of  three  bishops  from  other  parts  of  Egypt.  All 
which  serves  to  illustrate  the  subordination  of  the  clergy 
in  the  country  to  those  of  the  city. 

This  view  of  the  subject  is  not  new;  nor  is  it  put  forth 
as  original  in  the  writer.  It  has  the  sanction  of  many 
authors  from  whom  the  above  particulars  have  been  de- 
rived. Of  these,  it  is  sufficient  to  mention,  Spittler,^ 
Pertsch,<^  Mosheim,''  Planck,^  Neander,^  Guerike,!^  Siegel,ii 
Schoene,i2  W.  Bohmer.i^  D'Aubigne.i^ 

II.  Of  the  early  ascendancy  of  the  bishops  in  the  cities 
over  those  of  the' country. 

In  close  connection  with  the  foregoing  changes  in  the 
government  of  the  churches  and  in  their  relations  to  each 
other,  there  were  others  which  were  equally  influential  in 
disturbing  the  mutual  relations  which  had  hitherto  sub- 
sisted, both  between  the  clergy  one  toward  another,  and 
between  the  bishop  of  the  city  and  the  clergy  in  the 
country. 

1.  Of  these  changes,  the  most  important  is  the  division 
of  the  clergy  into  the  separate  orders  of  hishop  and  presby- 
ter. The  ordinary  priesthood,  as  established  under  the 
apostles,  constituted,  as  we  have   seen,  but  one   class   or 

5  Can.  Rechts.,  §  4—10.     e  ib.,  §  17—23,  und.  Kirchen  Hist.,  Sec.  II. 

7  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  II,  §  37,  note  3. 

8  Gesell.  Verfass.,  pp.  18—83,  546—572. 

9  -Allgem.  Kirchen  Gesch.,  1,  2d  ed.,  p.  314—316.        lo  lb.,  p.  95—97. 
n  Kirchliche  Verfass.,  2,  pp.  454—473 ;  4,  p.  378. 

^2  Geschichtsforschungen,  Vol.  3,  p.  336 — 340.  See  also,  Cone.  Carthag., 
c.  31,  Bracar.,  c.  1,  Agath.,  c.  63,  TarFacon,  c.  8. 

13  Alterthumswissenschaft,  1,  p.  2.30—236. 

14  Hist,  of  Reformation,  Vol.  I,  p.  18.     JX.  Y.,  1843, 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  253 

order;  and  were  denominated,  indiscriminately  and  inter- 
changeably, bishops  and  presbyters.  The  great  historian, 
to  whom  the  reader  is  indebted  for  the  Introduction  which 
stands  at  the  head  of  this  volume,  ascribes  the  origin  of  this 
distinction  to  the  second  century,  and  the  full  development 
of  their  respective  orders  to  a  period  considerably  later.^^ 
Waiving,  in  this  place,  the  further  discussion  of  this  vexed 
question,  we  will  here  state  the  origin  of  this  distinction, 
according  to  Siegel  and  others,  as  a  fair  expression  of  the 
prevailing  views  of  those  who  deny  the  original  superiority 
of  the  bishop  and  the  apostolical  origin  of  Episcopacy. 

There  was  at  first  but  one  church  in  a  city,  to  which  all 
the  Christian  converts  belonged.  But  the  care  of  the 
church  was  entrusted,  not  to  one  man,  but  to  several,  who 
constituted  a  college  of  presbyters^  and  divided  the  duties  of 
their  office  among  themselves.  This  arrangement  was 
conformable  to  the  analogy  of  the  Jewish  synagogue,  after 
which  the  church  was  organized.  A  plurality  of  persons 
every  where  appears  in  the  Acts  as  the  representatives  of 
the  church  at  Jerusalem.  They  appear,  also,  in  the  church 
at  Ephesus,  Acts  20:  17—28;  and  at  Philippi,  Phil.  1:  1. 
Titus  was  also  instructed  to  ordain  elders  in  all  the  cities 
in  Crete.  In  such  a  college  of  elders,  sharing  a  joint 
responsibility  in  the  care  of  the  churches,  it  would  obvi- 
ously be  convenient,  if  not  indispensable,  for  one  of  their- 
number  to  act  as  the  moderator  or  president  of  their  assem- 
blies. Such  a  designation,  however,  would  confer  on  the 
presiding  elder  no  official  superiority  over  his  fellow-pres- 
byters ;  but,  coupled  with  age,  and  talents,  and  spiritual 
gifts,  it  might  give  him  a  control  in  their  councils,  and  in 
the  government  of  the  church.  This  control,  and  this 
official  rank,  as  the  ngosaid);,  the  presiding  elder,  which 
was  first  conceded  to  him  by  his  fellow-presbyters  only  as 

»5  Comp.  his  Apost.  Gesch.,  1,  50,  198,  seq.  406.  AUgem.  Kirch.,  1,  327, 
328,  2d  ed. 

22 


254  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

a  fellow-preshyter,  ti  primus  inter  pares,  he  began  in  time 
to  claim  as  his  official  prerogative.  He  first  began  by- 
moral  means  and  the  influence  of  accidental  circumstances 
to  be  the  bishop  of  the  church,  and  afterwards  claimed  the 
office  as  his  right.  This  assumption  of  authority  gave  rise 
to  the  gradual  distinction  between  bishop  and  presbyter. 
It  began  early  to  disturb  the  relations  of  equality  which  at 
first  subsisted  between  the  ministers  of  the  churches ;  and, 
in  the  course  of  the  second  and  third  centuries,  resulted  in 
the  division  of  the  clergy  into  two  distinct  orders, — bishops 
and  presbyters. 

This  simple  exposition  of  the  origin  of  the  Episcopal 
office  has  the  sanction  of  the  most  approved  authorities, 
particularly  of  the  distinguished  historian  whose  works 
we  have  so  often  cited,!^  to  which  we  may  add  Gieseler,!'^ 
Guerike,i8  Gabler,i9  Mosheim,20  Pertsch,2i  and  many 
others. 

2.  The  duties  and  responsibilities  of  the  bishop,  in  times 
of  persecution,  had  their  influence  in  exalting  this  officer, 
and  separating  him  further,  both  from  the  presbyters  and 
the  people.  Under  such  circumstances,  the  bishop  of  the 
metropolis   became    the    counsellor  and   guardian   of  the 

16  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  39,  seq.  3d  ed.,  50,  198,  seq.  406.  Allgem.  Gesch., 
1  324,  seq.  2d  ed.  "  In  tlie  Acts,  a  plurality  of  presbyters  always  appears 
next  in  rank  to  the  apostles,  as  representatives  of  the  church  at  Jerusalem. 
If  any  one  is  disposed  to  maintain  that  each  one  of  these  presbyters  pre- 
sided over  a  smaller  part  of  its  special  meetings,  still  it  must  be  thereby 
established,  that,  notwithstanding  these  divided  meetings,  the  church 
formed  a  whole,  over  which  this  deliberative  college  of  presbyters  presided, 
and  therefore  the  form  of  government  was  still  of  a  popular  character." — 
Neander,  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  c.  2,  3d  ed.  "  This  plurality  of  ministers  over 
the  same  church  continued,  even  to  the  fourth  century,  to  be  the  order  of 
the  churches." — Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  551. 

17  Lehrbuch  der  Kirchengesch  ,  3,  Aufl.  1,  118. 

18  Kirch.  Geschichte,  1,  pp.  89—93,  2d  ed. 

19  De  Epis.  primae  eccl.  eorumque  origine. 

20  Hist.  Eccl.,  3,  p.  108,  seq.,  and  Kirchenrecht,  by  Ernst,  p.  52. 

21  Can.  Recht.,  p.  42.  Kirch.  Hist.,  Saec.  II,  c.  5,  $  8—15.  Compare, 
especially,  Ziegler's  Versuch  der  Gesch.  der  Kirch.  Verfass.,  pp.  34—61. 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  255 

churches.  His  wisdom,  his  talents,  and  his  influence  were 
their  confidence  and  trust.  To  him  the  needy  and  dis- 
tressed also  looked  for  consolation  and  relief. 

3.  The  rage  and  vengeance  of  their  persecutors  fell 
often  upon  him ;  and,  while  it  excited  the  sympathy  and 
veneration  of  the  church,  prepared  them  more  readily  to 
acquiesce  in  his  authority. ^^ 

4.  As  the  church  increased  in  numbers,  the  intercourse 
between  each  member  individually  and  the  bishop  became 
less,  and  a  corresponding  separation  between  him  and  his 
people  of  necessity  ensued. 

5.  Many  of  them  were  the  successors  of  the  apostles,  or 
the  bishops  of  apostolical  churches,  and  this  circumstance 
gave  them  additional  consideration.^^  The  bishops  of 
Rome,24  of  Carthage,  of  Jerusalem,^^  and  others,  derived 
importance  from  this  consideration.  The  divisions  and 
regulations  of  these  churches,  which  had  been  planted  by 
the  hand,  or  reared  up  under  the  immediate  supervision  of 
the  apostles,  had,  with  other  churches,  not  unfrequently  a 
canonical  authority  equivalent  to  that  of  statute  laws.^^ 

6.  The  distinction  between  the  clergy  and  laity,  which 
began  about  this  time,  is  worthy  of  particular  notice.  In 
the  apostolical  churches  the  office  of  teaching  was  not 
restricted  to  any  particular  class  of  persons.  All  Christians 
accounted  themselves  the  priests  of  God ;  and  between  the 
church  and  their  spiritual  leaders  very  little  distinction  was 
known.     This  fact  is  so  universally  acknowledged,  that  it 

22  Spittler's  Can.  Recht.,  c.  1,  §  5. 

23  Comp.  Tertull.,  De  Praescript.  Advers.  Haeret.,  c.  20,  26,  36.  Peter 
de  Marca,  de  Concord.  Sacerd,  et  Tm.,  Lib.  5,  c.  20.     Lib.  7,  c.  4,  §  6,  seq. 

24  Jrenaeus,  Advers.  Haer.,  Lib.  3,  c.  23  4,  c.  26}  5,  c.  20,  44. 
23  Firmil.,  ap.  Cyp.,  Epist.  75. 

26  Mosheim,  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  II,  §  21.  In  this  section  and  the 
accompanying  note  is  given  a  full  and  interesting  illustration  of  the  canon- 
ical authority  of  such  churches.  Comp.,  also,  Gieseler,  Lehrbuch,  pp.  160 
—163,  Note. 


256  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

were  needless  to  multiply  authorities  in  proof  of  it.  But  it 
forcibly  indicates  the  nature  of  the  original  constitution  of 
the  church. 27  The  distinction,  accordingly,  of  pastors  and 
people  into  two  distinct  orders,  the  clergy  and  the  laity, 
as  distinctly  marks  the  workings  of  that  spirit  which  was 
fast  obliterating  the  features  of  its  early  organization. 
Tertullian,  t  218,  is  the  first  to  mention  this  distinction.^^ 
The  people  have  now  become  an  inferior  order,  the  dis- 
tinction between  them  and  the  higher  order  of  the  clergy 
widens  fast,  and  the  government  of  the  church,  which  has 
hitherto  been  vested  in  the  people,  passes  rapidly  into  the 
hands  of  the  bishop. 

7.  The  clergy  begin  to  claim  authority  from  the  analo- 
gies of  the  Jewish  priesthood.  The  officers  of  the  church 
were  originally  organized  according  to  the  order  of  the 
Jewish  synagogue.  The  name  and  office  of  rulers  of  the 
synagogue  were  transferred  to  the  church.  But  the  bishops 
now  begin  entirely  to  change  their  ground,  and  to  claim 
analogy  to  the  Jewish  priesthood  of  the  Old  Testament. 
They  are  no  longer  incumbents  in  office  at  the  pleasure  of 
the  people,  and  dependent  upon  them ;  but  divinely  consti- 
tuted the  priests  of  God;  and  divinely  appointed  by  him  to 
instruct  and  to  rule  over  the  church.  "  When  once  the 
idea  of  a  Mosaic  priesthood  had  been  adopted  in  the 
Christian  church,  the  clergy  soon  began  to  assume  a  supe- 
riority over  the  laity.    The  customary  form  of  consecration 

27  Nonne  et  laici  sacerdotes  sumus?  Differentiam  inter  ordinem  et  ple- 
bem  constituit  ecclesiae  auctoritas;  adeo  ubi  ecclesiastic!  ordinis  non  est 
consessus  et  offers,  et  tingis  et  sacerdos  tibi  es  solus. — Da  Exhortat.  Castit., 
c.  1,  p.  522,  Primum  omnes  docebant  et  omnes  baptizabant  3  ut  cresceret 
plebs  et  multiplicaretur  omnibus  inter  initia  concessus  est  et  evangelizare 
et  baptizare  et  scripturas  explorare. — Hilary,  cited  by  Neander,  Allgem, 
Gesch.,  1,  p.  311.  Comp.  p.  321.,  seq.,  especially  335—337,  2d  ed.  Comp. 
Cyprian,  Ep.  76.  Suicer,  Thesaurus,  art.  y.h]Qog,  Guerike,  Kirch.  Gesch., 
Vol.  I,  93,  94,  and  J.  H.  Bohmer,  De  Differentiam  inter  Ordinem  Ecclesi- 
ast.,  &c. 

28  De  Monogamia,  c.  12,  p.  533. 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  257 

was  now  supposed  to  have  a  certain  mystic  influence,  and 
henceforth  they  stand  in  the  position  of  persons  appointed 
by  God  to  be  the  medium  of  communication  between  him 
and  the  Christian  world."  ^9 

8.  From  this  it  was  but  a  slight  modification  to  assert 
the  divine  right  of  Episcopacy,  and  the  apostolical  succes- 
sion in  the  line  of  the  bishops.  Sentiments  to  this  effect 
are  of  frequent  occurrence  in  the  writings  of  Cyprian,  t  258. 
The  bishops  also  assumed  new  titles,  such  as  sacer dotes, ^^ 
priests,  high-priests,  rulers  of  the  church,  &c.3i 

Finally,  these  arrogant  assumptions  ended  in  the  claim 
of  guidance  and  wisdom  from  on  high,  by  the  communica- 
tions of  the  Spirit  of  God.  This  was  also  the  false  and 
flattering  dream  of  Cyprian,^-  and  from  him  has  been, 
more  or  less,  the  favorite  dogma  of  prelacy,  to  the  present 
day.  These  claims  of  the  bishop  to  a  divine  commission, 
and  to  illumination  from  above,  were  more  confidently  put 
forth  at  a  later  period,  when  the  hierarchy  was  more  fully 
established. 

The  following  comprehensive  summary  offers  a  fit  con- 
clusion to  the  preceding  remarks.  "  In  process  of  time," 
says  Mosheim,  "  the  bishops  found  means  to  abridge  the 
rights  of  the  presbyters,  the  deacons,  and  the  people. 
Such  is  the  course  of  the  world.  They  who  are  honored 
with  the  respect,  and  entrusted  with  the  affairs  of  society, 
agreeably  to  the  natural  love  which  every  man  has  for  pre- 
ss Gieseler,  Cunningham's  Trans.,  1,  p.  156.  Comp.  Manscher's  Hand- 
buch  der  Christ.  Dog.,  3,  p.  15.  Conder's  Protestant  Nonconformity, 
Vol.  I,  p.  224.  Comp.  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  p.  163.  Mosheim,  De 
Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  II,  §  24. 

30  Comp.  Cyp.,  Ep.  3,  4,  59.  Spittler's  Can.  Recht,  c.  1,  §  11.  Henke, 
Allgem.  Gesch.  der  Christ.  Kirch.,  1,  p.  120.  Mosheim,  De  Rebus,  Saec. 
Ill,  §  24. 

31  Origen,  Hom.  2,  in  Jer.,  Adv.  Cols.,  Lib.  3.     In  Math.,  Tract  31,  32. 

32  Placuit  nobis  sancto  spiritu  suggerente  et  Domino  per  visiones  multas 
et  manifestas  admonente. — Cyprian,  Epist.  54,  p.  79.  Cone.  Car.,  A.  D. 
252. 

22^ 


258  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

eminence,  seek  for  greater  distinction,  and  the  people  favor 
the  desire.  Strife  and  contention  are  the  necessary  conse- 
quence of  dividing  offices  of  trust  among  many ;  and  these 
struggles  usually  end  in  the  advancement  of  him  v^^ho  is 
highest  in  office.  Even  Cyprian,  who  acknowledged  the 
authority  of  the  church  over  the  bishop,  and  his  duty  in  all 
things  to  act  in  concert  with  the  clergy,  had  still  the 
address  so  to  exalt  the  power  of  the  bishop  as  to  overthrow 
the  rights  both  of  the  clergy  and  the  people.  He  affirmed 
that  God  made  the  bishops;  that  they  were  the  vicegerents 
of  Christ,  and  responsible  to  none  but  to  God.  He  was  the 
father  of  this  dogma ;  and  the  bishops  continued  to  claim 
this  prerogative  until  the  ninth  century,  when  the  pope 
appropriated  it  exclusively  to  himself.  The  rights  of  the 
people  and  of  the  clergy  were,  in  process  of  time,  wrested 
from  them,  they  retaining  only  a  negative  vote.  The 
bishops  proceeded  themselves  to  appoint  the  presbyters  and 
deacons.  The  people  were,  at  first,  consulted  by  the 
bishops,  but  it  was  only  an  unmeaning  form.  The  bishop 
carried  the  appointment  of  his  favorite  candidate ;  and  the 
reference  to  the  people  was  a  mere  act  of  courtesy.  They 
were  the  agents  of  God.  Opposition  to  their  will  was 
disobedience  to  him.  The  deacons  became  the  creatures 
of  the  bishop,  dependent  upon  him  alone,  and  having  little 
concern  with  the  people.  In  a  word,  the  deacons,  even  in 
the  second  century,  were,  in  many  places,  no  more  what 
they  were  at  first.  In  ecclesiastical  matters,  the  people 
were  still  consulted  in  some  form,  either  by  the  bishop  in 
person  or  by  deputies ;  but  they  neither  voted  individually, 
nor  collectively,  in  concert.  When  any  measure  of  impor- 
tance was  to  be  carried,  the  bishops  first  secured  the 
interest  of  the  presbyters  in  their  favor;  and  when,  by 
various  means,  they  had  accomplished  this,  it  only  re- " 
mained  for  the  people  to  yield  a  respectful  acquiescence. 


KISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  259 

Some  occasionally  dissented,  but  the  measure  was  gene- 
rally carried,  agreeably  to  the  will  of  the  bishop."  ^3 

The  bishops  rose  in  rank  and  power,  as  we  have  seen, 
not  by  any  sudden  and  violent  assumption  of  diocesan 
authority,  but  by  the  silent  concession  and  approbation,  at 
first,  of  the  people.  Their  authority  and  influence  was,  as 
yet,  only  that  which  is  conceded  to  talent  and  piety  in 
official  stations,  employed  and  exerted  for  the  general 
good.  "  So  that  the  growth  of  Episcopal  power  is  not 
altogether  attributable  to  ambitious  designs  on  the  part  of 
those  by  whom  it  was  first  exercised.  So  far  from  this, 
the  effect,  as  Dr.  Campbell  has  remarked,  '  is  much  more 
justly  ascribed  to  their  virtues.'  How  paradoxical  soever 
this  may  sound,  it  is  difficult  to  account  in  any  other  way 
for  the  unopposed  ascendency  which  was  so  soon  obtained 
by  men,  whose  ambition,  had  it  betrayed  itself  when  as  yet 
unarmed  by  wealth  or  power,  required  but  to  be  withstood, 
in  order  to  be  rendered  harmless.  That  deference  was, 
however,  lavishly  conceded  to  personal  character,  from  a 
principle  of  veneration  and  unbounded  confidence,  which  it 
would  have  been  next  to  impossible  openly  to  wrest  from 
people  roused  to  a  jealous  sense  of  their  rights."  ^4  Their 
influence  was  analogous  to  that  of  a  modern  missionary 
over  the  churches  which  he  has  gathered  about  him  in 
different  stations ;  or  it  resembled  that  which  the  apostles 
and  first  preachers  exercised  over  the  churches  which  were 
planted  by  them.  It  is.  only  to  be  regretted,  that  these 
bishops,  in  claiming  to  be  the  successors  of  the  apostles,  in 
office  and  in  power,  had  not  also  enough  of  the  spirit  of 
their  reputed  predecessors,  to  employ  the  high  trust  which 
was  committed   unto   them   only  for  the    interest   of  the 

33  Kirchenrecht,  by  Ernst,  pp.  61 — G3. 

34  Conder's  ISionconformity,  1,  p.  227.  Campbell's  Lectures,  pp.  94,  95. 
Mason's  Works,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  217,  seq.  Dr.  Barrow's  Treatise  on  Popish 
Supremacy. 


260  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

churches  under  their  care ;  and  then  to  resign  it  again  for 
the  same  great  end,  instead  of  perverting  the  sacred  privi- 
leges of  their  office  into  the  means  of  gratifying  unholy 
ambition  in  the  extension  of  the  Episcopal  prerogatives. 

We  have  here  an  easy  explanation  of  the  difficulty 
which  the  advocates  of  prelacy  affect  to  press  with  great 
force,  in  calling  upon  us  to  explain  the  origin  of  Episco- 
pacy, on  the  supposition  that  it  is  not  of  divine  appoint- 
ment. Here,  we  are  told,  is  an  alleged  usurpation, 
"without  discussion,  without  excitement,  without  oppo- 
sition, without  known  authors  or  abettors ;  a  radical  and 
permanent  overthrow  of  an  existing  system  of  church 
government  throughout  the  whole  Roman  empire,  before 
the  apostles  were  cold  in  their  graves."  Now,  a  hundred 
years  is  surely  a  considerable  time  to  allow  for  one  to  grow 
cold  'in  his  grave.  But,  all  oratory  apart,  it  is  conceded 
here  is  a  change,  an  early  change,  and  made  without  con- 
troversy or  opposition.  And  we  are  earnestly  pressed  for 
an  explanation.  We  accept  the  challenge ;  and  appeal  to 
the  considerations  already  suggested  as  an  adequate  expla- 
nation. All  the  probabilities  of  the  case  are  coincident 
with  the  change.  Is  it  strange,  under  all  the  circumstances 
of  the  case,  that  the  care  of  the  churches  should  devolve 
upon  a  few  ?  Is  it  a  thing  incredible,  that  men  should  love 
the  exercise  of  power,  and  find  means  to  secure  it  ?  Does 
history  give  no  trace  of  any  transition  from  a  free  and 
popular  government  to  one  more  despotic  ?  What  was  the 
end  of  the  ancient  republics  of  Greece  ?  What  succeeded 
to  the  popular  government  of  consular  Rome  ?  How  did 
the  popular  movement  in  the  French  Revolution  terminate? 
All  history,  ecclesiastical  and  secular,  shows  how  easily  the 
sovereign  power  of  the  many  may  pass  into  the  hands  of  a 
few.  But  in  the  instance  before  us,  the  churches,  in  con- 
fiding simplicity  and  sincerity,  conceded  to  their  spiritual 
rulers  the  rights  in  question  by  tacit  consent.     And  after 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  261 

long-continued  usage,  the  sanctions  of  synoclical  decrees, 
confirmed  by  apostolical  succession,  by  divine  right,  and  by 
the  teachings  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  seem  quite  sufficient  to 
guarantee  to  bishops  the  quiet  possession  of  their  Episcopal 
prerogatives. 

"  Power,"  says  Dr.  Hawkes,  himself  an  eminent  Episco- 
palian, "  always  passes  slowly  and  silently,  and  without 
much  notice,  from  the  hands  of  the  many  to  the  few;  and 
all  history  shows  that  ecclesiastical  domination  grows  up 
by  little  and  little.  The  overwhelming  tyranny  from  which 
the  Reformation  freed  the  Protestant  church,  grew  up  by 
this  paidatim  process."  ^5 

"  Different  from  their  modern  followers  must  have  been 
those  ancient  Presbyterians,  not  to  have  struck  a  single 
blow  !"  True,  indeed,  but  not  at  all  difierent  from  their 
modern  American  successors,  were  those  primitive  Episco- 
palians, in  yielding  tamely  to  the  continual  encroachments 
of  Episcopal  power.  Nay,  we  contend  that  the  progress  of 
Episcopacy  in  this  country  is  itself  a  phenomenon  more 
extraordinary,  more  unaccountable,  than  the  rise  and  prog- 
ress of  Episcopacy  in  the  ancient  church. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  introduction  of  Episcopacy  into 
this  country  gave  rise  to  a  long  and  bitter  controversy. 
The  objection,  from  within  the  Episcopal  churches  as  well 
as  from  without,  was,  that  its  form  of  government  is  anti- 
republican,  and  opposed  to  the  spirit  of  our  free  institutions. 
The  House  of  Burgesses,  in  Virginia,  composed  chiefly  of 
Episcopalians,  declared  their  abhorrence  of  bishops,  unless 
at  the  distance  of  three  thousand  miles,  and  denounced 
"  the  plan  of  introducing  them,  in  the  most  unexceptionable 
form,  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic,  as  a  pernicious  project." 

When,  at  last.  Episcopacy  was  introduced,  it  was  only 
by  a  compromise, — the  Episcopalian  churches  consenting 
to  submit  to  diocesan  Episcopacy,  only  in  a  form  greatly 
35  Cited  in  Smyth's  Eccl.  Republicanism,  p.  16G. 


262 


THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 


modified,  and  divested  of  its  most  obnoxious  features.  To 
the  exclusion  of  the  laity  from  a  free  and  full  participation 
in  the  affairs  of  the  government  they  would  not  for  a  mo- 
ment submit.  Such,  according  to  Bishop  White,  was  the 
prejudice  of  Episcopalians,  "  against  the  name,  and  nmch 
more  against  the  office  of  a  bishop,  that,  but  for  the  intro- 
duction of  the  laity  into  the  government  of  the  church,  no 
general  organization  would  probably  have  been  formed." 
Accordingly,  the  people  were  allowed  freely  to  choose  their 
own  pastors,  and  to  have  a  full  representation  in  all  their 
courts.  This  American  Episcopacy  was  so  modified,  and 
the  prelatical  powers  of  the  bishop  so  restricted  by  the 
checks  and  balances  of  republican  principles,  that  the 
English  prelates,  on  the  other  hand,  were  reluctant  to  con- 
fer the  Episcopate  upon  Bishop  White,  alleging  that  he 
"  entertained  a  design  to  set  up  Episcopacy  on  the  ground 
oi preshyterial  and  laij  authority.'''' 

Such  was  American  Episcopacy,  at  first, — qualified  as 
much  as  possible,  by  the  infusion  of  popular  principles,  to 
restrain  the  arbitrary  powers  of  the  bishop.  But  what  now 
has  this  same  Episcopacy  become  ?  What  are  now  the 
powers  of  the  bishop,  compared  with  what  they  then  were  ? 
He  is  enthroned  in  power  almost  as  arbitrary  as  that  of  an 
Eastern  despot;  and  assumes  to  rule  by  an  authority  inde- 
pendent of  the  will  of  his  subjects.  The  bishops  are 
permanent  and  irresponsible  monarchs,  restrained  by  no 
judicial  tribunal.  The  house  of  bishops  admit  no  order  of 
the  inferior  clergy  to  their  councils.  They  have  an  abso- 
lute veto  upon  the  acts  of  the  general  convention.  They 
ordain,  depose,  and  restore  to  the  ministry,  at  pleasure, 
whom  they  will ;  "  so  that  a  Puseyite  bishop  may  fill  the 
church  with  impenitent  and  unconverted  men."  He  can 
prevent  any  congregation  from  settling  the  minister  of  their 
choice,  or  displace  one  at  his  will,  and  may,  '■'■upon  jyrohahle 
cause,''^  forbid  any  clergyman  from  another  diocese  to  offici- 


RISE    OF    EPISCOPACY.  263 

ate  in  his  own.  Such  is  the  fearful  nature  of  those  powers 
which  are  now  entrusted  to  this  spiritual  despot  in  our  free 
republic. 36 

And  yet,  in  the  face  of  all  this  ominous  accumulation  of 
the  Episcopal  prerogatives,  the  claims  of  the  bishops  are 
still  pressed  higher  and  higher.  The  house  of  bishops, 
with  all  its  powers,  has  been  superinduced  upon  the  gene- 
ral convention,  since  its  establishment  in  America.  Now 
these  privileged  hierarchs  can  only  be  tried  by  themselves; 
i.  e.,  if  a  president  is  guilty  of  any  crime  or  misdemeanor 
whatever,  he  must  be  impeached  and  tried  by  a  jury  of 
presidents  alone;  a  governor,  by  a  jury  of  governors.  In 
one  convention,  the  bishop  lately  claimed  and  exercised  the 
right  of  adjusting,  himself,  the  roll  of  the  members,  denying 
to  them  the  right  of  all  deliberative  assemblies, — that  of 
deciding  upon  the  qualifications  of  their  own  members; 
and  that  same  convention,  "by  a  vote  of  nearly  three  to 
one,"  meekly  accorded  to  their  prelate  this  right. ^'^  An- 
other convention  provides  that  its  proceedings  '■'■shall  not  be 
open  to  the  puhlic.^^  It  gives  to  the  bishop  an  absolute  veto 
upon  all  their  acts ;  and,  to  crown  the  whole,  makes  him 
"  the  judge  in  all  ecclesiastical  trials."  Well  may  we  say, 
with  Dr.  Hawkes,  "  Nothing  but  this  was  wanting  to 
MAKE  HIM  absolute.  We  wiU  speak,  and  speak  out,  when 
we  see  all  power,  legislative,  judicial,  and  executive,  centred 
in  one  man  in  such  ample  plenitude,  that  he  may  even  dic- 
tate to  the  fashion  of  a  surplice,  or  the  shape  of  a  gown."  38 
This  admirable  specimen  of  religious  legislation,  we  are 
told,  was  actually  prepared  by  the  bishop  himself,  and  rati- 
os These  astounding  facts  and  principles,  with  the  original  authorities 
for  them,  are  disclosed  more  at  length  in  the  writings  of  Dr.  Smyth,  to 
whom  we  are  chiefly  indebted  for  the  above  abstract  of  them.  Compare, 
especially,  Apost.  Succession,  pp.  507 — 509,  and  Ecclesiastical  Republi- 
canism, pp.  153 — 172. 

37  Letters  to  the  Laity,  by  a  Protestant  Episcopalian,  p.  17. 

38  New  York  Review,  Oct.,  1835,  cited  in  Letters  to  the  Laity. 


264  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

fied  in  a  state  more  radically  democratic  than  any  other  in 
the  Union !  "  Let  any  man  read  that  constitution,  and 
then  say,  whether,  if  the  individual  who  has  been  thus 
extravagantly  exalted,  had  dared  to  brave  the  public  senti- 
ment of  the  country  in  which  he  lives,  so  far  as  to  carry 
out  into  practice  the  authority  which  has  been  thus 
lavishly  bestowed  upon  him,  we  should  not  have  to  look  to 
the  mountains  of  Vermont  for  the  mightiest  spiritual  auto- 
crat at  present  inhabiting  the  globe, — with,  perhaps,  one 
exception,  the  man  who  wears  the  tiara,  and  builds  his 
habitation  on  the  seven  hills."  ^9  In  addition  to  all  this, 
the  late  transactions  in  the  diocese  of  New  York  are  fresh 
in  the  public  mind,  and  familiar  to  all; — the  high-handed 
despotism  of  the  prelate,  and  the  profound  self-abasement 
with  which  a  large  portion  of  that  body  could  consent  to 
kneel  down  in  the  dust  at  the  feet  of  their  sovereign  pon- 
tiff, and  crave  his  benediction. 

Consider  now  this  enormous  extension  of  the  Episcopal 
power  in  this  enlightened  age,  in  this  free  republic, — this 
monstrous  spiritual  despotism  imposed  upon  a  people, 
jealous  above  all  men  of  their  rights,  and  prompt  to  repel 
every  invasion  of  them ; — contemplate  such  a  people,  under 
such  circumstances,  with  scarce  a  feeble  note  of  remon- 
strance, bowing  themselves  down  to  this  hierarchal  su- 
premacy, and  shall  we  wonder  at  the  early  rise  of  a  mild 
and  unformed  Episcopacy?  Shall  we  marvel  at  the 
gradual  extension  of  its  influence  over  feeble  churches, 
dependent  for  their  support  and  protection  ?  Why  should 
this  be  thought  a  thing  incredible,  in  view  of  what  is 
transpiring  in  our  midst  ? 

39  Letters  to  the  Laity,  p.  27. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  DIOCESAN  GOVERNMENT. 

This  term  denotes  the  ecclesiastical  organization  after  a 
fuller  development  of  the  Episcopal  system,  and  farther 
concentration  of  power  in  the  hands  of  the  bishop.  The 
system  was  gradually  matured,  and  settled  upon  the  churches 
in  the  several  provinces,  at  different  times,  extending 
through  an  indefinite  period.  The  establishment  of  this 
form  of  government  cannot  with  precision  be  assigned  to 
a  specific  epoch.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  the  third  century 
may  be  assumed  as  the  period  in  which  the  diocesan  gov- 
ernment was  chiefly  consolidated  and  established.  It  was 
the  result  of  a  variety  of  causes,  which  deserve  a  careful 
consideration,  and  was  productive  of  consequences  of  great 
moment  to  the  interests  of  religion.  The  course  of  our 
inquiries  in  relation  to  the  establishment  of  Diocesan 
Episcopacy  will  lead  us  to  consider, 

I.     The  means  of  its  development. 
XL     Its  results. 

I.  Means  of  its  development. 

1.  The  formal  organization  of  the  whole  system  was 
effected  chiefly  by  means  of  provincial  synods  and  councils. 

The  consideration  of  these  councils  belongs  to  another 
work.i     But  whatever  may  have  been  their  origin,  such 

1  Christian  Antiquities,  chap.  17,  §  9,  pp.  356—367. 

23 


266  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ecclesiastical  assemblies  were  regularly  held,  in  the  third 
century,  in  Asia  Minor,  and  were  frequently  convened  in 
other  provinces,  for  the  transaction  of  business  relating  to 
the  interests  of  the  church. ^  They  were  summoned  by 
the  presiding  bishop  of  the  province.  The  bishops  of  the 
province  were  expected  to  attend,  and  if  any  were  present 
from  other  provinces,  they  were  courteously  recognized  as 
members  of  the  same.  The  presbyters  and  deacons,  also, 
had  at  this  time,  in  the  opinion  of  many,  a  seat  and  a  voice 
in  these  councils,  though  at  a  later  period  they  were  ex- 
cluded. These  councils,  on  the  one  hand,  were  the  highest 
judicature  of  the  church,  where  all  that  related  to  its  interests 
in  the  province  was  discussed ;  on  the  other,  they  fulfilled 
the  office  of  privy  council  to  the  bishop.  Here,  especially, 
were  all  cases  brought  relating  to  the  bishops.  Cases  of  this 
kind  could  only  be  brought  before  the  council  in  a  full 
assembly  of  the  bishops,  and  even  then  not  at  pleasure, 
but  only  with  their  consent.  Such  assemblies,  it  must 
readily  be  seen,  afforded  a  convenient  method  of  propound- 
ing any  subject  of  common  interest  unto  the  churches ; 
though  the  bishops  themselves  probably  were  not  aware 
of  the  important  consequences  which  might  result  from 
assuming  thus  to  give  laws  to  the  church.  The  de- 
cisions of  the  synod,  also,  at  first,  assumed  the  form  of 
law,  rather  by  common  consent,  than  as  an  imperative 
enactment.  They  were  the  decisions  of  a  public  delibera- 
tive and  representative  assembly,  in  which  the  voice  of  the 
majority  becomes  the  law  of  the  whole ;  and,  under  the 
sanction  of  such  authority,  were  received  as  the  rule  of 
the  church.  But  the  bishops,  having  once  acquired  the 
power  of  giving  laws  to  the  church,  soon  changed  the 
ground  of  their  authority ;  and,  instead  of  legislating  for 

2  Necessario,  says  Firmilian,  A.D.  257,  apud  nos  fit,  ut  per  singulos  annos 
seniores  et  praepositi  in  unum  conveniamus,  ad  desponenda  ea  quae  curae 
nostrae  commissa  sunt.^Cyp.,  Ep.  75,  p.  14-3. 


THE    DIOCESAN    GOVERNMENT.  267 

those  churches  in  their  name,  and  as  their  representatives, 
they  assumed  the  right  of  giving  laws  to  the  church  by 
■virtue  of  their  Episcopal  ofRce  ;  and  for  this  assumption 
they  claimed,  as  has  been  already  mentioned,  the  sanction 
of  divine  authority,  as  the  ministers  of  God,  ju7-e  divino, 
and  under  the  guidance  of  his  Spirit.^ 

The  above  representation  is  only  an  epitome  of  the 
sentiments  of  Planck,  in  his  work  on  the  Constitution  of 
the  Church,  which  has  been  so  frequently  cited.^  They 
accord  entirely  with  the  representations  of  Mosheim,  and 
many  others  which  might  be  named. ^  Mosheim  very 
truly  remarks,  that  these  councils  "  were  productive  of  so 
great  an  alteration  in  the  general  state  of  the  church,  as 
nearly  to  effect  the  entire  subversion  of  its  ancient  consti- 
tution. For,  in  the  first  place,  the  primitive  rights  of  the 
people,  in  consequence  of  this  new  arrangement  of  things, 
experienced  a  considerable  diminution,  inasmuch  as  thence- 
forward none  but  affairs  of  comparatively  trifling  import- 
ance were  ever  made  the  subject  of  popular  deliberation 
and  adjustment;  —  the  councils  of  the  associated  churches 
assuming  to  themselves  the  right  of  discussing  and  regu- 
lating everything  of  moment  or  importance ;  as  well  as  of 
determining  all  questions  to  which  any  sort  of  weight  was 
attached. — In  the  next  place,  the  dignity  and  authority  of 
the  bishops  were  very  much  augmented  and  enlarged.  In 
the  infancy,  indeed,  of  the  councils,  the  bishops  did  not 
scruple  to  acknowledge  that  they  appeared  there  merely  as 
the  ministers  or  legates  of  their  respective  churches ;  and 

3  Placet !  VisMin  est !  is  the  style  not  unfrequently  in  which  the  sum- 
mary decisions  of  their  councils  are  given  ;  or  if  the  decision  relates  to  an 
article  of  faith,  credit  catolica  ecclesia!  Athanasius,  De  Synodo.  Arimin. 
et  Seleuciae,  Ferdin.,  De  Mendoza,  De  Confii-matione  Cone,  111.,  Lib.  2, 
c.  2,  cited  by  Spittler. 

4  Gesellschafts-Verfass.,  1,  p.  90—100. 

5  Compare  also  Henke  and  Vaters,  Allgemein.Kirchen  Gesch.,  1,  p.  120, 
Beq.     Eichhorn's  Can.  Recht.,  1,  p.  20.    Riddle's  Chron..  pp.  32,  33. 


26S  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

that  they  were  in  fact  nothing  more  than  representatives 
acting  under  instructions.  But  it  was  not  long  before  this 
humble  language  began,  by  little  and  little,  to  be  exchanged 
for  a  loftier  tone ;  and  they,  at  length,  took  it  upon  them 
to  assert  that  they  were  the  legitimate  successors  of  the 
apostles  themselves,  and  might,  consequently,  by  tlieir  own 
proper  authority,  dictate  to  the  Christian  flock.  To  what 
an  extent  the  inconveniences  and  evils  arising  out  of  these 
preposterous  pretensions  reached  in  after  times,  is  too  well 
known  to  require  any  particular  notice  in  this  place." ^ 
Some  of  these  remarks,  however,  are  especially  applicable, 
as  the  intelligent  reader  will  perceive,  to  the  state  of  things 
somewhat  later  under  the  metropolitan  government. 

2.  The  doctrine  of  the  unity  of  the  church  had  an  in- 
fluence in  consolidating  the  churches  together  under  an 
Episcopal  government. 

This  notion  was  early  developed.  It  first  occurs  in  the 
epistle  of  the  church  of  Smyrna,  concerning  the  martyrdom 
of  Polycarp.'''  It  was  more  distinctly  advanced  by  Irenaeiis 
and  TerluUian,  in  the  second  century;  and,  in  the  third, 
became  the  favorite  dogma  of  Cyprian,^  and,  after  him,  of 
many  others.^  The  effect  was  to  create  greater  oneness  of 
feeling  and  concert  of  action  among  the  churches  as  mem- 
bers of  one  and  the  same  body.  It  brought  the  churches 
into  more  frequent  correspondence;  and,  in  many  ways, 
contributed  to  the  establishment  of  uniform  laws  and  reg- 
ulations under  an  Episcopal  hierarchy. i^^  This  idea  of  a 
holy  catholic  church,  one  and  indivisible,  extending  through 

6  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  II,  §  23.     Comp.  Saec.  II,  $  22;  Saec.  Ill, 
§  24.   Also,  Kirch.  Recht,  pp.  0)5,  &0). 
1  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  4,  c.  15,  §  1. 

8  Pro  corpore  totius  ecclesiae  cujus  pervarias  quasque  provincias 
membra  digesta  sunt. — Ef.  30,  p.  41. 

9  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  p.  100,  seq.  Rothe,  Anf.  Chris.  Kirch,,  1, 
p.  576—589. 

10  Neander,  Allgem.  Gesch.,  1,  pp.  355,  371,  2d  ed.  D'Aubigne's  Hist, 
of  the  Reformation.    N.  Y.,  1843.    Vol.  I,  pp.  20— 22. 


THE    DIOCESAN    GOVERNMENT.  269 

all  lands,  and  binding  together  in  one  communion  the  faithful 
of  every  kindred  and  people,  was  a  conception  totally  un- 
like the  apostolical  sentiment  of  their  union  in  love  and 
fellowship  in  spirit.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  motive 
by  which  it  was  at  first  promulgated,  it  had  its  influence  in 
blending  the  churches  together  under  a  uniform  diocesan 
organization,  and  became  the  occasion  of  no  small  share 
of  the  bigotry,  intolerance  and  persecution  which  have  so 
often  dishonored  the  Christian  church. 

3.  The  correspondence  and  intercourse  between  the 
bishops  of  different  provinces  had  much  influence  in  estab- 
lishing their  diocesan  authority. 

Not  only  were  the  results  of  their  councils  officially 
communicated  to  foreign  bishops  and  churches,  but  the 
bishops  themselves  of  different  dioceses  were  in  corre- 
spondence one  with  another.  Their  own  appointment  to 
office,  their  official  acts,  were  duly  communicated.  By 
mutual  understanding  a  concerted  action  and  effort  was 
sustained,  to  aid  each  other  in  the  promotion  of  their  com- 
mon ends.  Their  acts  of  ecclesiastical  censure  were  ex- 
tensively published;  so  that  one  under  Episcopal  bans 
was  followed  by  his  sentence  of  excommunication  wherever 
he  went.  Nor  could  he  be  absolved  from  the  penalties  of 
his  sentence,  except  by  the  same  authority  that  had  con- 
demned him.  No  one  travelling  in  foreign  countries  was 
entitled  to  the  fellowship  of  the  churches  without  a  pass 
from  his  bishop.  The  want  of  this  was  presumptive  evi- 
dence against  him,  sufficient  to  exclude  him  from  their 
communion.  The  effect  of  these  regulations  was  to  sus- 
tain and  enforce  the  authority  of  the  bishops  in  their 
dioceses. 11 

4.  The  Disciplina  Arcani,  the  sacred  mysteries  of 
the  church,  while  they  shed  an  air  of  awful  sanctity  over 
the  solemnities  of  the  church,  were  well  suited  to  inspire 

»  Siegel,  Handbuch,  1,  art.  Briefwechsel,  Rheinnald's  Arch.,  §  4,  p.  99. 
23^ 


270  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  people  with  a  profound  veneration  for  the  bishop,  who 
was  the  high-priest  of  these  rites  and  the  chief  agent  in 
administering  them. 

The  discussion  of  this  subject  would  be  altogether 
foreign  to  our  present  object,  but  it  needs  no  peculiar 
sagacity,  to  perceive  that  the  system  addressed  itself  to 
principles  of  our  nature,  which  are  deep  and  strong,  and 
which,  moved  by  the  ministrations  of  the  bishop,  gave  him 
prodigious  power  over  the  minds  of  men.  This  secret 
system,  wholly  unknown  in  the  earlier  history  of  the  church, 
was  in  a  measure  matured  in  the  period  now  under  con- 
sideration.12 

5.  The  catechetical  instructions  and  discipline  preparatory 
to  admission  into  the  church,  had  a  powerful  influence  in 
giving  authority  to  the  doings  of  the  church,  and  preparing 
the  mind  for  a  passive  submission  to  her  jurisdiction. 

Throughout  the  first  century  Christian  converts  were 
received  by  baptism  into  the  church  simply  on  the  ground 
of  their  faith  in  Christ.  In  the  second  century  some  fur- 
ther instruction  began  to  be  required ;  and,  in  the  course 
of  the  third  and  fourth,  a  long  preliminary  course  of  train- 
ing was  required,  before  the  candidates  found  admission  to 
the  church.  They  were  divided  into  various  classes; 
and,  ascending,  by  slow  gradations  through  these,  with 
manifold  solemnities,  they  finally  approached  the  sacred 
shrine  of  the  church.  The  details  of  the  system  belong 
to  another  subject.  But  every  reader,  who  has  the  least 
acquaintance  with  the  antiquities  of  the  church,  must 
readily  perceive,  that  in  this  long  course  of  discipline,  ex- 
tending often  through  a  series  of  years,  the  catechumen 
might  be  duly  trained  to  revere  the  authority  of  the  church, 
and  to  submit  with  all  due  deference  to  the  agents  by  whom 
it  was  administered.  Without  the  operation  of  any  sinister 
motive,  the  natural  effect  would  be  to  inspire  a  profound 

12  Comp.  our  Christian  Antiquities,  c.  1,  §  4,  pp.  35,  36.    • 


THE    DIOCESAN    GOVERNMENT.  271 

respect,  both  for  the  ordinances  of  the  church,  and  for  those 
who  administered  them.i^  "  These  new  regulations," 
Planck  very  justly  remarks,  "were  the  surest  and  strongest 
means  man  could  have  devised  to  give  greater  importance 
to  the  church  in  the  eyes  of  the  new  members  ;  and  to  in- 
spire them  with  a  sense  of  the  importance  of  the  privilege 
bestowed  in  receiving  them  into  its  communion,  which 
again  would  revert  to  the  interests  of  the  church."!'* 

6.  To  the  same  effect,  also,  was  all  that  system  of  pen- 
ance, which  was  matured  in  connection  with  the  foregoing 
regulations. 

This  was  wholly  unknown  in  the  early  period  of  the 
church.  It  was  developed  in  connection  with  the  catechet- 
ical discipline  which  has  already  been  mentioned,  and 
was  indeed  a  part  of  the  same  system. ^^  It  was  admin- 
istered by  the  bishop,  who  alone  had  authority  to  inflict  or 
to  remove  these  penances. i^     It  was  a  scourge  in  his  hand 

13  Comp.  our  Christian  Antiquities,  c.  2,  §  5,  pp.  49 — 57. 

14  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  p.  132. 

i»  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  pp.  132—141. 

16  The  councils  of  Nice,  A.  D.  325,  c.  5,  and  of  Antioch,  A.  D.  341,  c. 
20,  make  some  provision  against  the  flagrant  injustice  which  one  might 
suflfer  in  this  way  from  the  bishop.  But  the  coifncil  of  Elliberis,  A.  D. 
305,  and  of  Sardica,  A.  D.  347,  give  to  the  bishop  unlimited  authority  in 
this  matter.  Osius,  episcopus  dixit.  Hoc  quoque  omnibus  placeat,  ut 
sive  diaconus,  sive  presbyter,  sive  quis  clericorum  ab  episcopo  suo  com- 
munione  fuerit  privatus,  et  ad  alteriim  perrexerit  episcopum,  et  scierit  ills 
ad  quern  confugit,  eum  ab  episcopo  suo  fuisse  abjectum,  non  oportet  ut  ei 
communionem  indulgeat.  Quod  si  fecerit,  sciat  se  convocatis  episcopis 
causas  esse  dicturem.  Universi  dixerunt :  Hoc  statutum  et  pacem 
servabit,  et  concordiam  custodiet,  c.  13,  (1(3.)  This  was  one  of  the  most 
celebrated  councils  of  the  age.  It  was  composed  of  one  hundred  and 
sixty-six  bishops  convened  both  from  the  Eastern  and  Western  churches, 
at  the  head  of  whom  was  the  venerable  Hosius,  who  it  would  seem  proposed 
it  as  an  expedient  to  preserve  peace  and  harmony  among  the  bishops. — 
El'  rig  y.Xijoixog  rj  Xuiy.og  ucpxoQigaerog  rjrot  ddexTog,  uTi'eldwv 
iv  siaQCf  noise,  de/Ofj  uvev  yQuii^uuTOJv  GvaTariy.wv,  ucpogitiadco 
xal  6  de^d/nsvog  xal  6  deydelg-  ei  ds  ucpb)Qia/n£Vog  eXtj,  innsc- 
vkaOco  auTW  6  d.g)OQiafidg,  (hg  ipevaa/uei'O)  xul  anaTr^uavn  rr^v 
l}t'Ai]ulav  Tov  deov.^Can.  Apost.,  12,  (13),  p.  2. 


272  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

which  he  could,  at  any  time,  apply  upon  those  who  might 
become  the  object  of  his  displeasure. 

The  transgressor  who  fell  under  ecclesiastical  censure 
was  doomed  to  a  long  train  of  the  most  humiliating  acts, 
in  token  of  his  penitence,  better  suited  by  far  to  illustrate 
the  tremendous  power  of  these  bans  than  to  lead  him  to 
true  repentance.  However  that  may  be,  a  despotic  govern- 
ment is  strong  and  stable  in  proportion  to  the  form  of  those 
sanctions,  by  which  it  secures  obedience  to  its  authority. 
The  rigors  of  this  penance,  accordingly,  invested  the  dio- 
cesan with  authority  adequate  for  the  administration  of 
his  government. 

If  any  received  such  an  one  to  his  communion  he  was 
himself  liable  to  the  sentence  of  excommunication. 

II.     Eesults  of  the  diocesan  organization. 

Under  this  head  we  shall  confine  our  attention  chiefly 
to  its  influence  in  establishing  an  aristocracy  in  the  church, 
and  in  preparing  the  way  for  a  full  development  of  the 
hierarchy,  under  a  metropolitan  organization,  to  which  the 
diocesan  soon  gave  place. 

1.  It  established  the  pre-eminence  of  the  bishop  in  the 
city  over  the  neighboring  churches. 

The  distinction  which  conventional  usage  first  gave  him 
now  became  an  established  right.  It  was  his  official  pre- 
rogative to  nominate  the  presbyters  to  these  churches. 
These  presbyters  continued  still  dependent  upon  him; 
and  the  churches  themselves  acknowledged  a  similar  rela- 
tion to  the  parent  church.  Thus  his  became  a  cathedral 
church,  ubi  cathedra  episcopi,  from  which  the  others  had 
proceeded,  and  to  which  they  acknowledged  a  filial  re- 
lation. 

2.  It  was  a  virtual  disfranchisement  of  the  laity. 
They  had,  indeed,  a  voice  in  the  elections  of  the  bishop ; 

and  some  little  participation  still  in  the  management  of  the 


THE    DIOCESAN    GOVERNMENT.  273 

concerns  of  the  church.  But  the  sovereignty  of  the  peo- 
ple was  effectually  lost.  Every  thing  was  carried  agree- 
ably to  the  will  of  the  bishops,  who  united  in  themselves 
the  right  both  to  make  and  to  execute  the  laws  for  the 
government  of  the  church.  This  union  of  the  executive 
and  legislative  power  in  the  same  persons  was  subversive 
of  all  true  religious  liberty,  as  it  ever  has  been  of  all 
political  freedom.  It  removed  the  checks  and  guards  of 
a  popular  government  against  the  exercise  of  arbitrary 
power.  It  invested  the  bishops  with  prerogatives,  which 
can  never  be  entrusted,  with  safety,  to  any  man  or  body  of 
men.  The  subsequent  history  of  the  church  abundantly 
illustrates  the  disastrous  consequences  of  this  surrender 
of  the  popular  rights  into  the  hands  of  the  clergy.  "  To 
revive  Christ's  church  is  to  expel  the  Antichrist  of  the 
priesthood,  which,  as  it  was  foretold  of  him,  as  God,  sitteth 
in  the  temple  of  God,  showing  himself  that  he  is  God,  and 
to  restore  its  disfranchised  members,  the  laity,  to  the  dis- 
charge of  .their  proper  duties  in  it,  and  to  the  consciousness 
of  their  paramount  importance." ^'^ 

3.  The  government  was  oppressive  upon  the  laity,  by 
entrusting  to  the  bishop  exclusively  the  right  of  ecclesias- 
tical censure. 

This  right,  again,  may  have  been  exercised,  at  first,  with 
moderation,  and  often  with  single  regard  to  the  purity  of 
the  church  and  the  honor  of  religion.  But  it  gave  the 
bishops  a  dangerous  control  over  the  private  members  of 
the  church.  It  might  inspire  them  with  the  fear  of  man, 
and  make  them  more  careful  to  escape  the  censure  of  the 
diocesan,  than  anxious  to  avoid  sinning  against  God. 
How  strictly  this  prerogative  of  the  bishop  was  guarded 
we  have  already  seen.  The  pass  of  the  bishop  was  indis- 
pensable in  all  cases  to  commend  a  stranger  to  the  fellow- 
ship of  his  Christian  brethren.     The  absence  of  this  was 

17  Christian  Life,  by  Arnold,  p.  52. 


274  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

presumptive  evidence  against  him.  Under  censure,  he 
had  no  redress,  however  unjustly  it  might  have  been 
inflicted  ;  and  could  only  be  restored  at  the  pleasure  of  his 
own  diocesan.  Such  was  the  subjugation  to  which  this 
system  of  government  reduced  the  laity, — a  subjugation,  to 
which  the  laity  of  the  Episcopal  church  in  America  seem 
to  be  fast  sinking,  under  the  continual  encroachments  of  the 
bishops  upon  their  rights.  "To  confine  the  decisions  of  all 
cases  which  must  arise  in  every  well-ordered  society,  to  the 
clergymen,  or  to  the  clergy  alone,  and  thus  to  consolidate 
in  their  hands  the  entire  government  of  the  body,  is  con- 
trary to  the  very  first  law  of  all  society,  which  provides 
that  no  man  shall  be  judge  in  his  own  cause.  On  this 
principle,  there  is  no  society,  no  freedom,  no  protection 
from  oppressive  and  despotic  rule,  no  bulwark  against  that 
resistless  tide,  with  which  power,  when  lodged  in  the  hands 
of  a  few  weak  and  im.perfect  men,  encroaches  upon  the 
territory,  and  the  just  rights,  of  all  who  are  opposed  to  it. 
Nor  can  that  ecclesiastical  system  be  possibly  republican, 
or  consonant  to  the  genius  of  our  free  commonwealths, 
which  subjugates  the  laity  to  the  clergy,  and  the  inferior 
clergy,  as  they  are  ignobly  called,  to  the  higher,  and  which 
attaches  a  supremacy  of  power  to  an  aristocratic  class."  ^^ 

4.  It  destroyed  the  independence  of  the  clergy  of  the 
diocesan. 

They  who,  by  their  proximity  to  the  bishop,  were 
brought  into  familiar  intercourse  with  him,  or  were  not  so 
immediately  dependent  upon  him,  still  maintained  a  certain 
degree  of  independence.  But  the  principle  of  subordina- 
tion, and  of  subjection  to  the  authority  of  the  diocesan, 
was  inherent  in  the  system,  and  clearly  manifested.  His 
authority  was,  indeed,  far  less  oppressive  than  it  afterwards 
became.  There  was  still  a  strong  republican  spirit,  that 
could   not    be    worn   away,    or   crushed   at   once.       The 

J8  Smyth's  Eccl.  Republicanism,  pp.  81, 82. 


THE    DIOCESAN   GOVERNMENT.  275 

churches  had  still  some  voice  in  the  management  of  their 
affairs.  They  had  a  right  to  appoint,  and  to  remove  their 
clergy  at  pleasure, — a  right,  which  even  Cyprian,  in  the 
middle  of  the  third  century,  fully  acknowledges.  He 
admits,  that  the  "  people,  in  obedience  to  the  commands  of 
the  Lord,  and  in  the  fear  of  God,  ought  to  separate  them- 
selves from  a  minister  of  an  immoral  character;  nor  should 
they  mingle  in  the  services  of  a  sacrilegious  priest,  for 
they  especially  have  power  to  choose  the  worthy,  and  to 
refuse  the  unworthy."  i^  This  right  of  the  church  afforded 
the  clergy,  also,  the  means  of  resisting  the  encroachments 
of  the  bishops,  by  making  interest  with  the  people.  It  was, 
accordingly,  the  policy  of  the  bishops  at  this  time  to  exercise 
their  authority  with  moderation. 

The  presbyters  were  also  the  privy  counsellors  still  of 
the  bishop  in  ecclesiastical  matters,  and  preached,  and  bap- 
tized in  common  with  him,  with  this  distinction,  that  in  the 
discharge  of  these  duties,  the  bishop  took  precedence  of  the 
other  clergy.  Still  the  authority  of  the  bishop  was  such 
as  practically  to  destroy  the  independence  of  the  clergy; 
and,  in  theory,  was  imperative  over  them. 

But  the  bishops  found  means  soon  to  efl^ect  the  subjection 
of  the  clergy  to  their  control.  They  could,  in  no  instance, 
travel  into  a  neighboring  province  without  a  pass  from  the 
bishop.  Much  less  could  a  presbyter  or  deacon  transfer 
himself  from  one  church  to  another,  Avithout  the  bishop's 
consent.  If  any  one  should  presume  so  to  do,  or  if  another 
should  receive  him  who  came  without  the  bishop's  consent, 
the  consequence  was  expulsion  from  his  office.^o 

19  Propter  quod  plebs,  obsequens  praeceptis  doininicis  et  Deum  metuens, 
apeccatore  praeposito  separare  debet,  nee  se  ad  sacrilegi  sacerdotis  sacri- 
ficia  miserere,  quoniam  ipsa  maxime  habeat  potestatem  vel  eligendi  dignos 
sacerdotes,  vel  indignos  recusandi. — Ep.  68,  p.  118. 

*"  El  Tig  TTQsa^viEQo;  i)  diuxofog  r]  olcog  jov  y.araloyov  rwv 
xXrjgixiav  b-noXslipag  ji^v  euviov  Traqotniav  elg  ijeqav  dneXdrj, 
xal  navTeliag  /ueiaaiug  diaigl^ri  iv  ulXi^  nagoixla  nagu  yp(x)^7]v 


276  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

5.  It  entrusted  the  bishop  with  a  dangerous  prerogative, 
by  giving  him  the  control  of  the  revenue  of  the  church. 

This  was  a  prerogative  alike  dangerous  and  unjust  in  its 
character,  and  injurious  in  its  practical  results.  It  was  an 
established  principle  in  the  polity  of  the  church,  at  this 
time,  that  the  bishop,  who  had  the  supremacy  in  spiritual 
things,  ought  the  more  to  have  the  same  in  things  tempo- 
ral.2^  Accordingly,  the  goods  and  property  of  the  church, 
its  revenues,  and  receipts  of  every  kind,  were  submitted  to 
the  disposal  of  the  bishop.  It  was,  indeed,  expected  that 
they  would  be  used  with  moderation,  and  equitably  dis- 
tributed, according  to  a  certain  rule.  The  other  clergy 
were  entitled  to  act  in  concart  with  the  bishop  in  the  distri- 
bution; but  there  was  still  abundant  opportunity  for  the 
exercise  of  arbitrary  power.  He  was,  virtually,  amenable 
to  no  one,  for  he  could  only  be  impeached  by  his  clergy, 

Tov  Idlov  imaxonov  toviov  xslevouev  fn]xsii>  lenovgysTv, 
fi&liaTa  si  Ttgogxaloviiiirov  avibv  rod  Eniaaonov  aiiov  inuveX- 
delv  ovx  v7ii']xovasv  hTtiiuivuiv  ttj  uTa^ict.'  w^  Xa'iy.og  jtisvrov  IxsTas 
xovvbiVEiKx). — Apost.  Can.,  14  (13),  Brum,  p.  3.  Comp.,  also,  Cone.  An- 
tioch,  c.  3.  Laodic,  c.  42.  Arelat.,  c.  21.  Chalced.,  c.  20.  Nice,  c.  16. 
Carthag.,  1,  c.  5.     Sardic,  16,  18,  &c.,  &c.     Siegel,  11,  p.  462. 

^^  n(xPTi»p  Twv  sxy.Xj]aiaaTiy,iov  TtgayitdToi'  6  enluy.OTiog  £/£TW 
Ti^r  cpQOVTida  zal  dtoiotsiTOJ  a-vra.,  wg  dsov  icpOQWVTog'  f^rj  h^el- 
vai  de  avT(^  acpSTeQiteadal  Tt  el  avjibv  t)  avyyeveoiv  idlotg  t« 
TOV  deov  yuoil^tadui-  el  ds  nivrjTsg  elev ^EniyoQi^yelxo)' i)g  nEvrj- 
aiv,  dcXlu  f.i^  TiQOCfdaei  TOvTOV  to.  ttJjJ  exyXijaiug  dTtsinnoXsiTca. 
JjQoa.rdTiouev  hniaxonov  E^ovclav  syeiv  tojv  ttj?  EUxXijaiag 
TTQccyjLKjCTOjv-     sl    yuo    Tug    ri/iUag   rav    ai'dgdjTicov   ipv/ug   avrco 

TtlGTEVTEOV,   TToXXia    dv  (IOlXXoV   Skoi   ETll    TG)V  yOl^^&10)V   ^VTeXXeG- 

dai^  ware  xard  Triv  aiiov  i^ovalav  nuvxa  diotyETadav,  xal 
ToXg  dso/HEPOig  diu  jwv  uQEu^vTEQtov  ital  diuxdvoov  EniyogijyEla- 
6av  (j/STU  (fo^ov  TOV  dsov  xul  7i(xai]g  svXu^Elug'  jUETuXaju^ydvsiv 
ds  Kai  avTOP  rdiv  8E6PTb}v  i^el'ye  dkono)  elg  Tug  dcpayy.ulug  avi(a 
XQEiag  xal  twv  etti^evov^uepmp  udsXcpoiP,  wc  xarct  ixtjdEPa  tqotiov 
aiuTOvg  iaTEgetadar  o  ydg  vo^og  tov  6eov  disid^aio,  Tovg  Tcj) 
6vaiaaT7jgl(i>  ■vmigETOvPTag  ix  tov  dvaiacnrjglov  TgeqiEadai' 
ETteineg  ovdh  aTgaTuoiuL  rtoie  idi'oig  vi}>o)Pioig  bnXa  y.ard  tioXe- 
fiioiv  ETiiCfkgoPTUi. — Aposi.  Can.,  37  (39),  40  (41),  Bruns,  pp.  6,  7. 


THE    DIOCESAN    GOVERNMENT.  277 

who  received  their  monthly  rations  from  him,  divisionem 
mensuram^  and,  accordingly,  would  be  slow  to  endanger 
their  living  by  exposing  themselves  to  his  displeasure. 
Under  these  circumstances,  they  were  reduced  to  a  humili- 
ating subordination,  which  exposed  them  to  the  oppressive 
exactions  of  arbitrary  power,  while  it  gave  security  to  the 
bishop  in  the  exercise  of  it.  How  closely  some  of  our 
bishops  have  copied  after  this  odious  canon,  we  have  seen 
at  the  close  of  the  preceding  chapter. 

The  council  of  Antioch,  A.  D.  341,  gave  the  bishops 
entire  control  over  all  the  property  of  the  church ;  and  the 
synod  of  Gangra,  A.  D.  362 — 370,  pronounced  their  solemn 
anathema  upon  any  one  who  should  either  give  or  receive 
any  of  the  goods  of  the  church  without  authority  from  the 
bishop.22  The  oppressive  bearings  of  this  system  are 
clearly  and  concisely  stated  by  Siege]  ,^3  and  more  at  length 
by  Planck.2^  Without  the  guidance  of  another,  however, 
they  must  be  obvious  to  any  one.  The  subsequent  history 
of  the  church  is  the  best  expositor  of  this  policy;  as  unjust, 
as  it  was  impolitic  and  injurious.  "  Responsibility  to  the 
people,  is,  therefore,  a  fundamental  principle  of  republican- 
ism ;  a  responsibility  which  gives  the  most  insignificant 
contributor  of  his  money  towards  any  object,  a  right  to 
examine  into  the  manner  in  which  it  is  disbursed." ^5 

^^  EX  Tig  jtaQTiocpOQi'ag  exxXtjcriaoTixug  ideXoi  Xa^it^avsiv  t) 
di86vav  s^co  TTJg  txxXj]alag  naqix  yv(bfii]V  tov  iTtiaxdnov  i)  t5 
^yxsxeiQiafisvov  rd  TOiuvTa,  xal  [li]  /ustcc  yvcafuijg  aviS  sdekot' 
nqaTxeiv,  6.v6.de[ia  sotm.  Ei'  Tig  didol  ri  la/u^dvoi,  KaQTiO(f}Ooiav 
nagexiog  t5  eniaxonov  i)  xS  ETtnejayfievov  eig  oixovo/iiav 
S'dnoii'ag,  xal  6  didovg  y.al  6  kcc/n^dcrov  dcvude/ua  eajo). — Cone. 
Gang.,  1,  8,  Bruns,  p.  108.     Comp.  Cone.  Aurel.,  1,  c.  14,  15. 

23  Handbuch,  11,  p.  463.  24  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  pp.  381—402. 

2=  "  The  great  rule  of  all  free  institutions, — that  the  people  alone  shall  lay 
taxes, — a  vital  principle  of  all  constitutional  government, — an  essential 
guaranty  of  all  safe  public  administration, — has  become  involved,  is  at 
stake}  that  solemn  canon  of  republican  creeds, — that  high  fundamental 
law, — no,  sir,  not  a  law,  the  mere  part  of  a  code,  or  a  constitution  j  it  is 

24 


278  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

6.  It  gave  the  bishop  unjust  power  over  the  clergy,  in 
inflicting  upon  them  ecclesiastical  censure. 

These  censures  were,  indeed,  administered  at  first  with 
caution,  and  not  without  the  concurrence  of  a  part,  at  least, 
of  the  clergy  and  of  the  church.  Such  moderation  was 
requisite,  to  prevent  a  combination  of  the  clergy  and  of  the 
people  against  the  bishop;  and  the  more  so,  before  the 
introduction  of  that  insidious  regulation  which  gave  the 
bishop,  who  inflicted  the  penally,  the  sole  right  of  removing 
it  at  pleasure.  This  crafty  policy,  introduced  partly  by  ex- 
plicit coalition  of  the  bishops,  and  partly  by  silent  consent, 
had  more  influence  than  any  other  in  completing  the  sub- 
jugation of  the  clergy,  and  settling  upon  the  churches  the 
government  of  an  oppressive  ecclesiastical  aristocracy.  The 
right  of  appeal-  to  the  civil  authority  was  also  strictly 
denied.26 

7.  It  was  the  occasion,  in  a  great  degree,  of  breaking 
down  the  good  order  and  discipline  of  the  church,  which 
had  hitherto  prevailed. 

This  was  the  direct  result  of  those  collisions  between  the 
bishops  and  presbyters,  to  which  we  have  already  alluded. 
"  The  bishops  claimed  to  have  the  highest  authority,  and 
acted  accordingly  in  the  government  of  the  church.  The 
presbyters  refused  to  acknowledge  this  claim,  and  strove  to 
make  themselves  independent  of  the  bishops.  This  strife 
between  the  Presbyterian  and  Episcopal  systems  is  of  the 
utmost  importance  in  developing  the  moral  and  religious 
state  of  the  church  in  the  third  century.  Many  presbyters 
made  use  of  their  influence  to  disturb  the  order  and  disci- 
pline of  the  church.  This  strife  was  in  every  .way  injurious 
to  the  order  and  discipline  of  the  church."  "27 

itself  a  constitution  3  for,  give  but  that,  and  a  real  constitution  must  follow  j 
take  it  away,  and  there  is  an  end  of  all  practical  freedom." — Mr,  Archer's 
Speech  in  Congress,  Aug.  1,  1842.  See  Locke  on  Government,  c.7,  §  94, 
Works,  Vol.  II,  p.  254. — Smyth's  Eccl.  Republicanism,  p.  27. 

26  Cone.  Antioch,  Can.  11. 

27  Neander,  Allgem,  Kirch.  Gesch.,  1,  pp.  329,  330,  2d  ed. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  METROPOLITAN  GOVERINMENT. 

This  was  a  more  comprehensive  organization,  to  which 
the  diocesan  soon  gave  place.  ■  It  is  not  easy  to  define  with 
precision  the  date,  of  its  establishment,  neither  is  it  impor- 
tant. It  was  not  the  production  of  a  day,  but  the  result  of 
a  gradual  modification  of  the  diocesan  government,  by  a 
further  concentration  of  Episcopal  power,  and  the  exten- 
sion of  its  influence  over  a  wider  range  of  territory. 
These  modifications  were  not  altogether  the  same  in 
every  country,  nor  were  they  simultaneously  effected. 
The  metropolitan  government  was  developed  in  the  East- 
ern church  as  early  as  the  first  half  of  the  fourth  century. 
The  council"  of  Nice,  A.  D.  325,  c.  4,  ordered,  that  the 
"  bishops  should  in  the  provinces  be  subject  to  the  metro- 
poHtan;"  and  again,  c.  6,  "that  no  one  should  be  appointed 
bishop  without  the  consent  of  the  metropolitan."  The 
council  of  Antioch,  A.  D.  341,  c.  9,  defined  and  established 
fully  the  rights  of  the  metropolitan. 

The  establishment  of  a  hierarchy  in  the  West  followed 
at  a  period  somewhat  later.  The  Christian  religion  was 
not  introduced  so  early  into  these  countries  as  in  those  of 
the  East.  It  was  still  more  blended  with  paganism, 
especially  in  the  provinces  and  remote  districts ;  and  the 
government  of  the  churches  was  more  unsettled  than  in 
those  of  the  Eastern  church.     Still  it  was  at  different  times 


280  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

finally  introduced  into  the  different  districts  of  the  Western 
church. 

The  capital  of  the  province  was  not,  of  necessity,  the 
seat  of  the  metropolitan  see,  nor  did  the  limits  of  metropoli- 
tan jurisdiction  uniformly  coincide  with  those  of  a  province. 
In  Africa  peculiar  respect  was  paid  to  seniority  of  office. 
The  bishop  of  Carthage,  however,  was  usually  regarded  as 
the  primate  of  the  country.  This  church  was  also  distin- 
guished for  its  peculiar  attachment  to  the  popular  freedom 
of  the  primitive  church ;  and,  to  some  extent,  successfully 
resisted  the  encroachments  of  metropolitan  usurpation.  It 
would  be  interesting  to  pursue  this  branch  of  the  subject, 
and  inquire  into  the  causes  which  led  to  the  selection  of 
the  several  cities  which  became  the  seat,  respectively,  of 
the  metropolitan  see,  but  we  must  content  ourselves  by 
simply  saying,  that  this  distinction  was  conferred  upon 
Jerusalem,  Antioch,  Caesarea,  Alexandria,  Ephesus,  Co- 
rinth, Rome,  Carthage,  Lyons,  and  others.  Thus  in  time 
the  metropolitan  government,  in  place  of  the  diocesan,  was 
settled  upon  the  whole  Christian  church. 

I.  Means  of  its  establishment. 

The  supremacy  which  the  bishops  had  already  acquired, 
together  with  the  increasing  extension  of  Christianity,  soon 
introduced  this  organization  as  a  new  form  of  the  hierarchy. 
After  becoming  the  state  religion  under  Constantino,  Chris- 
tianity spread  with  great  rapidity.  Small  churches  became 
large  Christian  communities,  of  sufficient  importance  to 
claim  the  privilege  of  having  bishops  of  their  own,  in  the 
place  of  presbyters.  These  bishops,  however,  like  the 
presbyters  who  preceded  them,  still  sustained  certain  rela- 
tions to  the  bishop  of  the  metropolis,  and,  in  many  ways, 
conceded  to  him  the  pre-eminence.  It  was  his  prerogative 
to  summon  the  meetings  of  the  synod,  to  make  the  intro- 
ductory address,  to  preside  over  their  deliberations,  and  to 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  281 

publish  the  results  of  their  council.  The  publication  of 
these  results  made  him  known  in  all  the  churches.  All 
official  returns  from  other  churches  and  councils  were  also 
made  to  him, — all  .which  contributed  to  establish  his  supe- 
riority, and  to  give  him  a  controlling-  influence  over  the 
other  bishops  of  the  province.  These  provincial  bishops 
soon  began  to  be  emulous  of  receiving  consecration  at  the 
hands  of  the  metropolitan ;  and,  accordingly,  he  began,  as 
opportunity  presented,  to  assume  the  right  of  ordaining. 
Thus  the  process  of  centralization- went  steadily  on,  widen- 
ing the  circle  of  its  influence,  and  drawing  more  under  the 
power  of  the  primate. 

This  authority  was,  as  yet,  wholly,  conventional,  so  that 
his  official  superiority  was  virtually  conceded  to  him,  and 
established,  before  the  intention  was  entertained  of  confirm- 
ing it  by  statute-law.  The  name  of  metropolitan  had  not 
yet  been  conferred  upon  him,  but  in  the  councils  of  this 
period  he  is  styled  pi'imate,  primate  of  the  apostolical  see, 
&c.^  But  about  the  beginning  of  the  fourth  century,  the 
prerogatives  of  the  metropolitan  began  to  be  the  subject  of 
statute  regulations.  As  in  civil  matters,  the  smaller  towns 
and  villages  were  dependent  upon  the  larger,  and  all  mutu- 
ally dependent  upon  the  capital  of  the  province,  so  in  the 
church,  the  country  was  divided  into  ecclesiastical  districts, 
corresponding,  even  in  7ia7?ze,  with  those  of  the  state.  Thus 
the  church  received,  from  the  Roman  state,  without  change 
of  signification,  the  terms,  metropolis,  diocese,  (fee;  so  that 
the  names  of  the  diflerent  orders  of  the  clergy  denoted  not 
their  official  duties,  so  much  as  their  local  relations  and 
relative  rank.  Hence,  the  names  of  rural  and  city  bish- 
ops,— provincial,  diocesan,  and  metropolitan.^ 

1  Comp.  Ziegler's  Versuch.,  pp.  69 — 71. 

2  The  development  of  the  metropolitan  system  is  briefly  stated  by  Siegel, 
Handbuch,  11,  p.  264,  seq.;  and  more  at  length,  by  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass,, 
1,  pp.  572— 598,  and  by  Ziegler,  pp.  61— 164. 

24*  . 


282  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

We  are  now  arrived  to  that  period  in  the  history  of  the 
church,  in  which  its  government  appears  almost  in  total 
contrast  with  that  of  its  apostolical  and  primitive  organiza- 
tion. The  supreme  authority  is  no  longer  vested  in  the 
church  collectively,  under  a  popular  administration,  but  in 
an  ecclesiastical  aristocracy,  entrusting  the  government  of 
the  church  to  a  clerical  hierarchy,  who  both  make  and 
administer  the  laws,  without  the  intervention  of  the  people. 
This,  then,  is  a  proper  point  to  pause,  and  contemplate  the 
practical  bearings  and  results  of  this  system  of  ecclesiastical 
polity  which  has  taken  the  place  of  that  which  the  church 
originally  received  at  the  hands  of  the  apostles. 

II.     Kesults  of  the  system. 

These  may  be  contemplated  in  their  relations  to  the  laity, 
to  the  clergy,  and  to  the  general  interests  of  religion. 

1.  In  regard  to  the  laity. 

{a)  It  destroyed  the  sovereignty  of  the  church  as  a  col- 
lective body. 

The  sovereign  authority  was  formerly  vested,  not  in  the 
apostles,  not  in  the  clergy,  but  in  the  whole  body  of  the 
church.  They  enjoyed  the  inherent  right  of  all  popular 
assemblies, — that  of  enacting  their  own  laws  and  regulations, 
and  of  controlling  the  execution  of  them,  by  electing  their  own 
officers  for  the  administration  of  their  government.  Under 
the  Episcopal  government,  this  cardinal  right,  the  only  basis 
of  all  rational  liberty,  civil  or  religious,  was  taken  away  from 
them.  They  had  no  part  in  framing  the  rules  by  which 
they  were  governed.  Though  they  still  retained  some 
control  over  the  election  of  their  spiritual  rulers,  the  system 
itself  was  already  a  virtual  disfranchisement  of  the  people ; 
and  finally  resulted  in  the  total  separation  of  the  people 
from  all  part  even  in  the  elections  to  ecclesiastical  offices. 
The  law-making  power  was  now  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the 
bishops,  who  gave  laws  to  the  people,  under  the  sanction  of 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  283 

divine  authority,  and  executed  them  at  their  own  pleasure. 
The  result  is  given  by  Planck,  in  the  following  terms : 
"  From  the  spirit  of  most  of  the  ordinances  which  these 
new  lawgivers  made  for  the  laity,  this  much,  at  least,  is 
apparent  from  the  execution  of  them,  that  they  were  directly 
designed  or  adapted  to  bring  the  people  yet  more  under  the 
yoke  of  the  clergy,  or  to  give  them  opportunity  more  fre- 
quently and  firmly  to  exercise  their  power."  ^ 

{b)  It  exposed  the  laity  to  unjust  exactions,  by  uniting 
the  legislative  and  executive  branches  of  government. 

The  union  of  these  has  ever  been  the  grand  expedient  of 
despotic  usurpation ;  and  it  holds  good,  as  truly  in  church 
as  in  state,  that  when  those  two  great  departments  of  gov- 
ernment are  united  in  one  and  the  same  man,  or  body  of 
men,  the  subjugation  of  the  people  is  well  nigh  completed. 
They  may  have  wise  and  good  magistrates,  who  will  gra- 
ciously extend  over  them  a  virtuous  administration;  but 
the  checks  and  restraints  by  which  the  popular  rights  are 
guarded  in  every  free  government,  are  effectually  removed. 
They  were  thus  taken  away  in  the  church  by  the  organiza- 
tion now  under  consideration.  The  people  had  no  adequate 
protection  against  the  exercise  of  arbitrary  power,  nor  any 
available  mode  of  redress,  under  the  injustice  to  which  they 
stood  exposed. 

But  the  clergy  enjoyed  many  privileges,  by  which  they 
were,  in  a  measure,  withdrawn  from  the  operation  of  law, 
on  the  one  hand,  and  on  the  other,  were  entrusted  with 
civil  and  judicial  authority  over  the  laity.  Three  particu- 
lars are  stated  by  Planck. 

1.  In  certain  civil  cases  they  exercised  a  direct  jurisdic- 
tion over  the  laity. 

2.  The  state  submitted  entirely  to  them  the  adjudication 
of  all  offences  of  the  laity,  of  a  religious  nature. 

3.  Certain  other  cases,  styled  ecclesiastical,  causae  ecclesi- 
asticae,  were  tried  before  them  exclusively. 

3  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  pp.  452,  453. 


284  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

The  practical  bearings  of  this  arrangement,  and  its  effects 
upon  the  clergy  and  the  laity,  are  detailed  by  the  same 
author,  to  whom  we  must  refer  the  reader.^ 

(c)  The  laity  were  separated  injuriously  from  the  con- 
trol of  the  revenues  which  they  contributed,  both  for  the 
maintenance  of  the  government  of  the  church,  and  for 
charitable  purposes. 

This  obnoxious  feature  in  the  ecclesiastical  polity,  which 
prevailed  at  this  time,  has  been  already  mentioned.  It  is, 
obviously,  an  equitable  principle,  that  every  man  or  body  of 
men  should  themselves  be  at  liberty  to  do  as  they  will 
with  their  own.  This  principle  requires  every  government 
that  would  respect  the  rights  of  the  people,  to  submit  to  them, 
in  some  form,  the  control  of  the  revenue.  To  deny  them 
this  right  is  injustice,  oppression,  unmitigated  despotism. 
The  hierarchy  was  a  spiritual  despotism,  which  completed 
the  subjugation  of  the  people,  by  removing  them  from  a 
just  participation  in  the  disbursement  of  the  revenues  of 
the  church.  All  measures  of  this  nature,  instead  of  origi- 
nating with  the  people,  as  in  all  popular  governments, 
began  and  ended  with  the  priesthood.^  The  wealth  of  the 
laity  was  now  made  to  flow  in  streams  into  the  church. 
New  expedients  were  devised  to  draw  money  from  them.^ 
Constantine  himself  also  contributed  large  sums  to  enrich 
the  coffers  of  the  church,  which  he  also  authorized,  A.  D. 
321,  to  inherit  property  by  will."^  This  permission  opened 
new  sources  of  wealth  to  the  clergy,  while  it  presented 
equal  incentives   to   their  cupidity.      With  what  address 

4  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  p.  308,  seq. 

5  Cone.  Gan.,  Can.  7,  8.  Bracar.  11,  c.  7.  The  above  canons  clearly 
indicate  the  unjust  and  oppressive  operation  of  this  system. 

6  It  was  a  law  of  the  church  in  the  fourth  century,  that  the  laity  should, 
every  Sabbath,  partake  of  the  sacrament ;  the  effect  of  which  law  was  to 
augment  the  revenues  of  the  church,  each  communicant  being  required  to 
bring  his  offering  to  the  altar.  Afterwards,  when  this  custom  was  discon- 
tinued, the  offering  was  still  claimed. — Cong.  Agath.,  A.  D.  585,  c.  4. 

7  Cod.  Theod.  4, 16,  Tit.  2,  C.  4.  Euseb.,  10,  6.  Sozomen,  Lib.  1,  c.  8. 
Lib.  5,  5. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  285 

they  employed  their  newly-acquired  rights  is  apparent  from 
the  fact  stated  by  Planck,  "  that  in  the  space  of  ten  years 
every  man,  at  his  decease,  left  a  legacy  to  the  church;  and, 
within  fifty  years  the  clergy,  in  the  several  provinces,  un- 
der the  color  of  the  church,  held  in  their  possession  one 
tenth  'part  of  the  entire  property  of  the  province.  By 
the  end  of  the  fourth  century,  the  emperors  themselves 
were  obliged  to  interpose  to  check  the  accumulation  of 
these  immense  revenues: — a  measure  which  Jerome  said 
he  could  not  regret,  but  he  could  only  regret  that  his 
brethren  had  made  it  necessary.^  Many  other  expedients 
were  attempted  to  check  this  insatiable  cupidity,  but  they 
only  aggravated  the  evil  which  they  were  intended  to 
relieve. 

{d)  The  system  in  question  was  not  only  a  violation 
of  the  natural  rights  of  the  laity,  but  it  was  equally  inju- 
rious to  their  spiritual  interests. 

If  it  be  important  that  the  people  should  appoint  those 
who  rule  over  them  in  civil  government,  much  more  is  it 
that  they  should  control  the  appointment  of  those  who  are 
to  be  set  over  them  in  the  Lord.  It  is  a  serious  objection 
to  this  system  that  it  interfered  with  this  religious  privilege. 
The  clergy  were  elected  by  the  bishop,  and  the  bishop 
again,  appointed  the  clergy.  The  intervention  of  the  peo- 
ple was  often  a  form,  and  even  the  form  itself  was  finally 
discontinued.  A  ministry  imposed  in  this  manner  upon  a 
people,  must  of  necessity  be  coldly  received  and  compara- 
tively barren  in  its  results.  This  topic  opens  a  fruitful 
subject  of  remark,  but  it  has  already  come  under  consid- 
eration, and  we  submit  it  to  the  reflections  of  the  reader 
without  further  remark. 

(e)  The  tendency  of  this  form  of  government  was  to 
render  the  laity  indifierent  to  the  religious  interests  of  the 
church. 

8  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  p.  281.    Comp.  Pertsch,  Kirch.  Hist.,  sec.  11,  c.  9. 


286  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

It  left  them  no  part  in  administering  the  concerns  of  the 
church;  and  the  consequence  seems  inevitable,  that  they 
would  do  little  for  the  promotion  of  its  purity.  The  moral 
obligation  rested,  indeed  upon  them,  to  which,  however, 
they  must  of  necessity  become  in  a  measure  insensible, 
having  little  opportunity  to  act  directly  in  the  fulfilment  of 
their  duty.  If  scandals  abounded,  it  belonged  not  to  them 
to  remove  them.  If  a  case  of  discipline  occurred,  it  began 
and  ended  with  the  clergy.  Every  thing  tended  to  sep- 
arate the  laity  from  the  care  of  the  church  ;  and  practically 
to  influence  them  to  neglect  the  duty  of  watching  and 
striving  together  for  the  maintenance  of  practical  godliness 
among  all  its  members.  Their  religious  and  covenant 
obligations,  if  acknowledged,  pressed  not  upon  them  with 
the  interest  of  an  urgent  and  present  duty.  The  severity 
of  the  penalties  which  the  system  of  penance  inflicted  was 
such  also  that,  by  mutual  consent,  they  connived  at  the 
offences  of  the  church,  and  concealed  them,  to  prevent  the 
bishops  from  exercising  their  authority  in  this  way  ;  and 
thus  the  discipline  of  the  church  came  to  be  neglected. 

(/)  The  tendency  of  the  system  was  to  sunder  the 
private  members  of  the  church  from  each  other,  and  to 
prevent  the  enjoyment  of  their  mutual  fellowship  and 
watchfulness  one  over  the  other. 

The  connection  of  each  member  with  the  church  was  a 
transaction  between  him  and  his  bishop  or  presbyter.  The 
ordinary  members  of  the  church,  having  no  agency  in  the 
transaction,  could  have  little  oneness  of  feeling,  or  union  of 
spirit,  with  those  who  were,  from  time  to  time,  enrolled  on 
the  records  of  the  church.  They  were  received  to  the 
ordinances  of  the  church,  rather  than  to  the  fellowship, 
the  confidence  and  affection  of  brethren,  one  in  heart,  in 
sympathy  and  Christian  love  with  them.  The  estrange- 
ment under  such  circumstances  is  mutual.  Nor  is  it  easy 
to  see  how  there  can  be  that  blending  of  spirit  and  flow  of 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  287 

love  between  all  of  the  several  members,  and  that  mutual 
watchfulness  for  each  other's  welfare,  which  Christ  designed 
as  one  of  the  richest  privileges  of  Christian  fellowship. 

The  mutual  estrangement  and  the  general  neglect  of 
Christian  watchfulness  and  discipline  which  dishonored  the 
church  at  this  time  is  forcibly  exhibited  by  Eusebius,  who 
lived  in  the  age  now  under  consideration;  he  says, — "After 
Christianity  through  too  much  liberty  was  changed  into  lax- 
ness  and  sloth — then  began  men  to  envy  and  revile  one 
another  ;  and  to  wound  one  another  as  if  with  arms  and 
spears  in  actual  warfare.  Then  bishop  arose  against  bishop, 
and  church  against  church.  Great  tumult  prevailed,  and 
hypocrisy  and  dissimulation  were  carried  to  the  highest 
pitch.  And  then  began  the  divine  vengeance,  as  is  usual, 
to  visit  us ;  and  such  was  the  condition  of  the  church  that 
the  most  part  came  not  freely  together.  "^ 

"As  things  now  are,  all  is  corrupted  and  lost.  The 
church  is  little  else  than  a  stall  for  cattle,  or  a  fold  for 
camels  and  asses ;  and  when  I  go  out  in  search  of  sheep 
I  find  none.  All  are  rampant  and  refractory  as  herds  of 
horses  and  wild  asses;  everything  is  filled  with  their 
abounding  corruptions."^^  Similar  sentiments  occur  abun- 
dantly in  the  writers  of  the  third  and  fourth  centuries  and 
the  ages  following. 

{g)  This  system  was  a  gross  infringement  of  the  right 
of  private  judgment  in  religion. 

It  was  a  law  strictly  enforced  that  every  laymen  should  be 
careful  blindly  to  believe,  without  inquiry,  without  evidence, 
all  that  the  church,  represented  by  the  bishop  in  synod, 
should  prescribe.  The  evidence  he  was  not  competent  to 
examine.  Here  is  the  origin  of  that  papal  policy  that 
denies  the  Bible  to  the  laity,  and  the  pattern  of  that  ''prudent 
reserve''  which  Puseyism  inculcates  in  preaching  the  gos- 
pel to  the  common  people.     The  exercise  of  one's  private 

»  Eccl.  Hist.,  .8,  c.  1.     10  Chrysostom,  Horn.  89,  in  Math.,  Vol.  7,  p.  830. 


288  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

judgment,  leading  him  to  dissent  from  the  prescribed  arti- 
cles, was  not  only  a  heinous  sin,  but  a  violation  of  the  law 
of  the  state,  punishable  with  severe  penalties. ^^ 

"In  endeavoring  by  the  secular  arm,  to  compel  all  the 
Christians  to  entertain  the  same  speculative  opinions,  the 
questions  then  debated,  the  sovereigns  at  once  turned  free 
discussions  into  controversy  and  strife.  They  inflamed 
instead  of  extinguishing  party  spirit.  They  formally  di- 
vided the  church  into  sects.  They  entailed  the  disputes 
of  their  own  times,  as  an  inheritance  of  sorrow  to  posterity, 
and  wrote  Intolerance  over  the  portal  of  the  house  of 
God."  12 

2.  Kesults  of  the  metropolitan  government  upon  the 
clergy. 

The  clergy,  under  this  system,  appear  in  many  respects 
in  strong  contrast  to  the  ministry  of  the  apostolical  and 
primitive  churches. 

{a)  Their  officers  are  greatly  multiplied.  Instead  of 
two  classes  of  ecclesiastical  officers,  as  the  ordinary  minis- 
ters of  the  church,  there  are  now  many  in  different  degrees 
of  rank,  defined  with  the  precision  and  guarded  with  the 
caution  almost  of  military  or  naval  discipline.  The  in- 
crease of  the  churches  would,  of  necessity,  require  a  cor- 
responding increase  in  the  number  of  its  ministers.  So 
that  even  in  the  second  century,  there  were  Christian 
churches  which  had  twenty  or  thirty  presbyters  and  some- 
times as  many  deacons. ^^  This  latter  class  however  was 
more  generally  limited  to  the  number  of  seven. i^     But  we 

11  Sozomen,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  7,  c.  6.  Codex  Theodosian,  L.  16, 
tit.  3, 1.  2. 

12  Rev.  Thomas  Hardy,  cited  in  Dr.  Brown's  Law  of  Christ;  respecting 
civil  obedience,  p.  512. 

13  Christ.  Antiq.  Art.  Deacons,  chap.  3,  $  10,  p.  107,  seq. 

14  The  church  at  Rome  under  Cornelius,  A.  D.  250,  had  46  presbyters, 
7  deacons,  7  sub-deacons,  42  clerks,  besides  52  exorcists,  readers,  janitors, 
&c.    Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  6,  c.  43. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  289 

have  now  several  entirely  new  classes  of  officers  in  the 
church,  sub-deacons,  acolyths,  readers,  exorcists,  door-keepers, 
&c.  To  these  were  subsequently  added  many  others,  advo- 
cates, avfdiyoi,  apocrisiarii,  cimeliarchs,  custodes,  mansionarii, 
notarii,  oiconomoi,  syncelli,  &c.,  &c.  The  specific  duties  of 
these  several  officers  are  briefly  stated  in  our  Antiquities 
of  the  Christian  Church, i^  and  more  at  length  in  the  larger 
works  of  Bingham,  Augusti,  Siegel  and  Boehmer. 
These  new  officers,  some  of  which  were  merely  titular, 
had  their  origin,  not  in  the  exigencies  of  the  church,  but 
from  other  causes,  which  indicate  still  farther  changes  in 
the  ministry  and  the  existing  government,  that  remain  to 
be  mentioned.  To  one  of  these,  allusion  has  already  been 
made,  but  it  requires  a  more  specific  consideration. 

{h)  The  distinctions  between  the  difterent  orders  of  the 
clergy  are  drawn  with  great  care,  and  cautiously  guarded. 

The  councils  of  the  period  abound  with  canons  defining 
the  boundaries  of  the  respective  grades  of  the  clergy. 
Henceforward  history  is  especially  employed  in  describing 
their  errors  and  disputes.  Gregory  Nazianzen,  A.  D.  360, 
in  view  of  these  ambitious  contentions,  exclaims,  "  How  I 
v/ish  there  had  been  no  precedence,  no  priority  of  place, 
no  authoritative  dictatorship,  that  we  might  be  distinguished 
by  virtue  alone.  But  now  this  right  hand,  and  left  hand, 
and  middle,  and  higher  and  lower,  this  going  before  and 
going  in  company,  have  produced  to  us  much  unprofitable 
affliction, — brought  many  into  a  snare,  and  thrust  them 
out  among  the  herd  of  the  goats;  and  they,  not  only  of  the 
inferior  order,  but  even  of  the  shepherds,  who,  though 
masters  in  Israel,  have  not  known  these  things."  i*^  "  I  am 
worn  out — with  contending  against  the  envy  of  the  holy 
bishops  ;  disturbing  the  public  peace  by  their  contentions, 
and  subordinating  the  Christian  faith  to  their  own  private 
interests.".  .  .  "If  I  must  write  the  whole  truth,  I  am  de- 

15  Chapter  IV,  pp.  119—130.  le  Orat.  28,  Vol.  i,  p.  484. 

25 


290  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

termiiied  to  absent  myself  from  all  assemblies  of  the 
bishops;  for  I  have  never  seen  a  happy  result  of  any 
councils,  nor  any  that  did  not  occasion  an  increase  of  evils, 
rather  than  a  reformation  of  them  by  reason  of  these  per- 
tinacious contentions,  and  this  vehement  thirst  for  power, 
such  as  no  words  can  express." i''' 

(c)     The  clergy  manifest  a  strong  party  feeling. 

There  is  an  esprit  du  corps,  which  separates  them  in 
interest  and  feeling  from  the  lower  orders,  and  from  the 
church.  They  have  become  one  party,  and  the  church 
another;  each  with  their  separate  interests.  And  these  too 
often  are  contrary,  the  one  to  the  other.  This  spirit  mani- 
fested itself  particularly  in  their  synods,  where  the  bishops 
sought  to  depress  as  much  as  possible  the  other  orders  of 
the  clergy.  Even  when  they  had  occasion  to  inflict  cen- 
sure upon  their  own  number,  the  hierarchy  never  forgot 
the  interests  of  their  order,  in  respect  to  the  other.i^  On 
the  other  hand,  many  rules  were  prescribed  regulating  the 
relative  rank  of  the  presbyters,  deacons  and  subordinate 
officers ;  and  the  violating  of  these  rules  was  punished 
with  increasing  frequency  and  severity.  For  proof  of  this 
reference  may  be  had  to  the  councils  of  Elvira,  Neocaesarea 
and  Nice.  19 

"They  (the  bishops)  had  the  means  of  carrying  any 
measure  for  their  own  advantage ;  and,  while  they  con- 
tinued united,  it  was  not  easy  for  a  whole  church,  even, 
and  much  more,  for  a  single  individual  of  the  clergy,  or 
of  the  laity,  to  oppose  them.  Even  if  a  whole  church  came 
into  collision  with  their  bishop,  they  must  submit  to  the 
decision  of  the  provincial  synod,  of  the  metropolitan,  and 
also  of  his  fellow-bishops.  The  danger  was,  that  these  all, 
and  even  the   churches  of  the   province,  would  agree  in  a 

17  Ep.  Philagrio,  65,  al.  59,  p.  823,  and  Ep.  Procopio,  55,  al.  42,  p.  814. 
IP  Cone.  Antioch.,  c.  2,  Synod.  Gangr.,  c.  1,  8.     Cone.  Chalcedon^  e.  8. 
19  Comp.  Cone.  Laodie.,  c.  20,  42,  56. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  291 

coalition  against  the  party  who  began  the  prosecution ;  so 
that,  in  the  end,  they  would  be  excluded  from  the  bonds  of 
Christian  fellowship.  Who  can  suppose  that  the  bishops 
could  be  men,  and  not  act,  in  such  circumstances,  for  the 
interest  of  their  order?" 20 

Is  it  at  all  easier  now  for  a  layman  to  oppose  successfully 
the  will  of  the  bishop  ?  Is  not  his  authority  as  absolute 
now  as  then,  and  his  will  as  certainly  carried  into  effect  ? 
Let  the  doings  of  the  late  convention  at  New  York  be 
consulted  for  a  reply. 

(d)  Under  these  circumstances,  strong  temptations  are 
presented  to  the  lower  orders,  to  become  the  sycophants  of 
the  higher  for  the  promotion  of  their  own  interests. 

The  inevitable  consequence  of  entrusting  the  offices  of 
the  church  to  the  arbitrary  disposal  of  the  bishops,  is  to 
surround  them  with  a  crowd  of  sycophants,  eager  to  se- 
cure their  favor. 

"  They  flatter  the  rulers,  they  affectionately  salute  the 
influential,  they  carefully  wait  upon  the  rich ;  the  glory  of 
God  they  disregard ;  his  worship  they  defile,  religion  they 
profane.  Christian  love  they  destroy.  ..^J'heir  ambition  is 
insatiable;  they  are  ever  striving  after  honor  and  fame. 
They  aspire  to  be  high  in  office ;  and,  to  accomplish  this 
end,  spare  not  to  excite  the  worst  of  enmities  among  the 
best  of  friends. "21  This  is  said  by  a  Roman  bishop,  of 
his  own  clergy ;  and  Gregory  of  Nazianzen,  at  an  earlier 
period,  charges  them  with  flattering  the  great  and  crouching 
to  them  in  every  way.  But  when  they -had  others  in  their 
power,  then  were  they  more  savage  than  lions  ;  and  joined 
one  party  or  another  for  the  slightest  reasons,  like  the 
polypus  that  can  assume  any  color  according  to  circum- 

20  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  p.  179.    Comp.  p.  129.    Ziegler's  Versuch., 
Sec,  pp.  56,  57. 

21  Leo  VII,  Epist.  ad  Episc.  Bavar.  ap.  Aventinum  et  in  Catal.  Test, 
Vet.,  p.  209.     Cited  in  Arnold's  Wahre  Abbildung,  p.  919. 


292  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Stances. 22  At  another  time  he  describes  them  as  "  seducing 
flatterers,  flexible  as  a  bough,  savage  as  a  lion  to  the  weak, 
cringing  as  a  dog  to  the  powerful,  who  knock  at  the  doors, 
not  of  the  learned,  but  of  the  great,  and  value  highest,  not 
what  is  useful,  but  what  is  pleasing  to  others. "23 

"  Wherever,"  says  Robert  Hall,  "  religion  is  established 
bylaw, with  splendid  emoluments  and  dignities  annexed  to 
its  profession,  the  clergy,  who  are  candidates  for  these  dis- 
tinctions, will  ever  be  prone  to  exalt  the  prerogative,  not 
only  in  order  to  strengthen  the  arm  on  which  they  lean, 
but  that  they  may  the  more  successfully  ingratiate  them- 
selves in  the  favor  of  the  prince,  by  flattering  those  ambi- 
tious views  and  passions  which  are  too  readily  entertained 
by  persons  possessed  of  supreme  power.  The  boasted 
alliance  between  church  and  state,  on  which  so  many 
encomiums  have  been  lav^ished,  seems  to  have  been  little 
more  than  a  compact  between  the  priest  and  the  magistrate 
to  betray  the  liberties  of  mankind,  both  civil  and  religious. 
To  this  the  clergy  on  their  part  at  least  have  continued 
steady,  shunning  inquiry,  fearful  of  change,  blind  to  the 
corruptions  of  government,  skilful  to  discern  the  signs  of 
the  times,  and  eager  to  improve  every  opportunity,  and  to 
employ  all  their  art  and  eloquence  to  extend  the  preroga- 
tive and  smooth  the  approaches  of  arbitrary  power." 

(e)  It  is  an  objectionable  feature  of  this  system,  that  the 
clergy  are  entrusted  with  the  exercise  of  both  ecclesiastical 
and  civil  powers. 

Constantine  gave  to  the  bishops  the  right  of  deciding  in 
secular  matters,  making  them  the  highest  court  of  judica- 
ture, and  ordering  that  their  judgment  should  be  final  and 
decisive  as  that  of  the  emperor  himself,  x^e/rw  rrj?  t&v 
aXXbiv   ditcaaTibv    (haavel    nugu    jov    ^uadiojg    i^evs^delGav^ 

22  Objurgat.  in  cler.     Cited  in  Wahre  Abbildung,  p.  918. 

23  De  Episcopis,  p.  1031.  Ed.  Basil.,  1571.  Ed.  Colon.,  1590,  Vol.  II, 
p.  304. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  293 

whose  officers  were  required  to  execute  accordingly  these 
decisions.24 

To  what  height  the  authority  of  the  clergy  finally  rose 
in  the  government  of  the  state  we  need  not  say.  With 
the  union  of  church  and  state  under  Constantine,  the  way 
was  opened  for  the  exercise  of  clerical  influence  in  many 
ways,  over  the  secular  interests  of  both.  Enough  was 
done  to  excite  in  the  bishops  an  ambition  for  worldly  power, 
and  scope  sufficient  was  given  for  the  play  of  these  dan- 
gerous passions.  The  details  we  must  leave  the  reader  to 
pursue  in  the  histories  of  the  church.  Siegel  has  men- 
tioned one  crafty  device,  which  sufficiently  discovers  the 
aspirations  of  prelatical  ambition  after  political  power. 
This  was  the  rule  which  required  "  the  subordinate  clergy 
to  obtain  permission  from  the  metropolitan  to  pay  their 
visits  to  the  emperor."  The  manifest  design  of  this  expe- 
dient was  to  overrule  the  appeals  of  the  inferior  clergy 
to  Caesar,  by  embarrassing  them  in  their  approaches  to 
him.  In  short,  the  policy  of  the  bishops  was  to  embarrass 
others  as  much  as  possible,  in  making  appeal  to  the  civil 
authority,  while  they  themselves  employed  it  to  accomplish 
their  own  party  purposes.  "  The  bishop,  for  example,  has 
some  measure  to  carry,  which  he  foresees  will  be  opposed 
by  others.  He  goes,  therefore,  to  the  palace  and  obtains 
from  the  emperor  a  decree  in  his  own  name,  formed  agree- 
ably to  the  will  of  the  bishops.  At  another  time,  a  new 
doctrine  is  to  be  put  forth  under  the  sanction  of  the  whole 
church,  as  an  article  of  faith.  From  this  others  dissent, 
and  declare  it  to  be  erroneous.  The  bishop  now  makes 
interest  at  the  palace,  either  to  have  a  synod  called  by 
authority  of  the  emperor  to  decide  the  point,  or  a  decree 
comes  direct  from  the  court,  declaring  the  article  in  ques- 
tion orthodox,  and  denouncing  all  who  dissent  from  it  as 
heretics.     More  frequently  a  presbyter  would  be  a  bishop, 

24  Sozomen,  Lib.  1,  c.  29.   Com.  Valesius  in  Euseb.,  De  Vit.  Const,  c.  27. 


294  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

or  a  bishop  of  a  small  and  feeble  church  would  be  promoted 
to  a  higher  and  richer.  But  seeing  that  this  in  the  ordi- 
nary course  of  things  cannot  be  accomplished,  he  applies 
again  to  the  palace,  and  has  the  address  to  obtain  a  recom- 
mendation, which  has  all  the  form  of  a  command,  or  else 
an  explicit  decree,  by  virtue  of  which,  without  further 
trouble,  he  is  advanced  to  his  desired  place. 

Hundreds  of  cases  to  this  effect  occur  in  the  history  of 
the  fourth  and  fifth  century.  And  all  this,  as  any  one 
must  see,  was  entirely  natural,  according  to  the  ordinary 
course  of  things.  When  so  often  availing  themselves  of 
this  right  of  appeal  to  the  emperors  as  they  did,  could  the 
bishops  fail  to  remember  they  could  in  this  way,  not  only 
serve  the  church,  but  promote  also  their  own  convenience, 
and  the  furtherance  of  their  designs? "25 

(/)  A  secular,  mercenary  spirit  now  dishonors  the 
clergy. 

The  history  of  the  times  abounds  with  examples  of  the 
clergy  who  neglected  or  forsook  their  sacred  duties  to  en- 
gage in  secular  pursuits  for  mercenary  purposes.  So 
prevalent  was  this  spirit  among  the  clergy,  that  the  council 
of  Eliberis,  A.  D.  305,  saw  reason  to  rebuke  and  restrain 
it,  by  requiring  them,  if  they  must  engage  in  trade,  to  con- 
fine their  operations  to  their  own  province.^^ 

"  The  church  that  before  by  insensible  degrees  welked 
and  impaired,  now  with  large  steps  went  down  hill  decay- 
ing; at  this  time  Antichrist  began  first  to  put  forth  his  horn, 
and  that  saying  was  common,  that  former  times  had 
wooden  chalices  and  golden  priests;  but  they,  golden 
chalices  and  wooden  priests.  '  Formerly,'  says  Sulpitius, 
*  martyrdom  by  glorious  death  was  sought  more  greedily 

25  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  pp.  269—271.     Comp.  pp.  453,  454. 

26  Cone.  Eliberis,  c.  4,  Comp  Cone.  Aurel.,  3,  c.  27.  Basil  the  Great 
complains  that  some  of  the  bishops  administered  ordination  for  hire, — 
making  even  this  "grace"  an  article  of  merchandize.  A  practice  which 
he  justly  condemns. — Ep.  63,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  147. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  295 

than  now  bishoprics  by  vile  ambition  is  bunted  after,' 
speaking  of  these  times;  and  in  another  place,  'they  gape 
after  possessions,  they  tend  lands  and  livings,  they  cover 
over  their  gold,  they  buy  and  sell;  and  if  there  be  any 
that  neither  possess  nor  traffic,  that  which  is  worse,  they 
sit  still  and  accept  gifts,  and  prostitute  every  endowment 
of  grace,  every  holy  thing  to  sale.'  And  in  the  end  of  his 
history  thus  he  concludes  ;  '  All  things  went  to  rack  by  the 
faction,  wilfulness  and  avarice  of  the  bishops ;  and  by  this 
means  God's  people  and  every  good  man  was  held  in 
scorn  and  derision.' "^^ 

{g)  The  disposition  of  the  bishops  to  torture  and  pervert 
the  language  of  Scripture  to  give  importance  to  their  order, 
is  worthy  of  particular  notice. 

Their  reference  to  the  Jewish  priesthood,  and  the  analo- 
gies w^hich  they  sought  from  the  Mosaic  economy  to  justify 
their  own  ecclesiastical  polity,  have  been  already  mentioned. 
From  the  same  source  sprang  the  conceit  of  the  divine 
right  of  Episcopacy,  of  the  apostolical  succession,  and  of 
the  validity  and  necessity  of  Episcopal  ordination.  On 
these  topics  another  shall  speak  whose  sentiments  have 
been  so  often  cited,  and  who  has  written  on  the  constitution 
of  the  church  more  at  length  and  with  greater  ability 
than  any  other  historian.  After  adverting  to  their  reference 
to  the  Jewish  priesthood,  to  the  transfer  of  the  names  of 
that  priesthood  to  the  clergy  of  the  Christian  church,  and 
to  the  analogies  which  were  sought  out  between  the  chief 
priests  of  the  temple,  and  the  bishops  of  the  church, 
Planck  proceeds  to  say;  — "  It  is  easy  to  see,  and  was  fore- 
seen, what  advantages  they  might  gain  if  they  could  once 
bring  this  notion  into  circulation  —  that  the  bishops  and 
presbyters  w^ere  set  apart,  not  by  the  church,  but  hij  God 
himself ;^^ — that  they  held  their  office,  and  the  rights  of 

27  Milton's  Prose  Works,  Vol.  I,  p.  22. 

28  It  was  a  favorite  sentiment  of  Cyprian,  that  God  makes  the  priests. 
Deus  qui  sacerdotes  facit. — Epist.  69,  52. 


296  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

their  office,  from  God  and  not  from  the  church — that  they 
were  not  the  servants  of  the  church,  but  ordained  of  God 
to  be  its  overseers,  and  appointed  by  him  to  be  the  guardians 
of  its  sanctity  —  that  the  service  of  the  ministry  for  this 
new  rehgion  must  be  performed  aUogether  by  them,  and 
by  their  body — and,  therefore,  that  they  must  of  necessity 
constitute  themselves  a  distinct  order,  and  form  a  separate 
caste  in  the  church; — all  this  was  clearly  manifest  to  their 
minds  ;  and,  accordingly,  they  sought  out  with  all  diligence, 
the  analogies  from  which  all  these  consequences  could  so 
easily  be  drawn. 

"In  view  of  the  obvious  advantages  which  the  bishops 
would  gain  from  the  prevalence  of  such  sentiments,  one  is 
not  surprised  that  Cyprian  sought  so  much  to  propagate 
them  in  his  day.  ■  Having,  therefore,  so  much  interest  in 
the  promulgation  of  these  sentiments,  from  which  pro- 
ceeded, as  a  necessary  consequence,  the  divine  right 
of  their  office,  the  bishops  found  means  more  fully  to  es- 
tablish them  by  claiming  to  be  the  successors  of  the  apostles. 
They  accordingly  began  now,  for  the  first  time,  to  promul- 
gate, with  a  specific  intent,  this  doctrine  of  the  apostolical 
succession.  The  bishops  had,  indeed,  from  the  beginning 
of  the  second  century,29  appropriated  to  themselves  the 
title  of  the  successors  of  the  apostles,  but  it  occurred  to  no 
one,  and  least  of  all  to  them,  that  they  had  of  right  in- 
herited the  authority  of  the  apostles,  and  were  instated  in 
all  their  rights.  These  claims,  however,  were  not  only 
put  forth  before  the  middle  of  the  third  century  as  an 
acknowledged  right,  but  the  bishops  carefully  availed  them- 


29  This  author  supposes  the  distinction  between  bishop  and  presbyter  to 
have  prevailed  from  the  beginning — a  distinction^  however,  appropriately 
implying  no  official  superiority.  "  The  bishop  perhaps  regarded  himself 
as  somewhat  different  from  a  presbyter,  but  not  at  all  superior  to  him.  He 
thought  himself  more  than  a  presbyter,  only  inasmuch  as  he  had  more  to 
do  than  a  presbyter." — p.  31. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  297 

selves  of  the  advantages  resulting  from  an  inheritance  of 
the  apostolical  succession. 

"  One  of  the  advantages  claimed  was  the  exclusive 
right  of  ordination.  This  favorite  doctrine  has  ever  since 
held  a  conspicuous  place  among  their  rights  in  the  church. 
Indeed,  it  has  been  the  ruling  sentiment  of  the  Episcopal 
hierarchy, —  the  foundation  of  this  entire  theory  of  an 
ecclesiastical  ministry.  The  church  were  taught  to  believe 
that  the  right  in  question  was  borrowed  from  the  ancient 
Jews;  and  that  the  apostles,  by  means  of  it,  had  originally 
inducted  bishops  and  presbyters  into  office. ^o  They  were 
taught  that  the  laying  on  of  hands  was,  not  merely  a  sym- 
bolical rite,  but  that  it  must  be  regarded  as  a  religious  act, 
having  in  itself  a  certain  efficacy,  by  which  the  individual 
upon  whom  it  had  been  rightl}^  performed  was  not  only 
invested  with  all  the  rights  of  the  office,  but  was  also 
rendered  competent  to  impart  to  others  the  same  clerical 
grace.  In  a  word,  a  mysterious  and  supernatural  power 
was  ascribed  to  this  laying  on  of  hands,  by  which  the 
Holy  Spirit  was  transmitted  to  the  person  who  received 
ordination  from  them;  just  as  the  apostles,  by  the  laying 
on  of  their  hands,  communicated  the  gift  of  working 
miracles.     Acts  8:   17.    10:  47. 

"  When  once  the  bishop  had  come  to  be  regarded  as 
the  successors  of  the  apostles,  they  could  easily  lay  claim 
also  to  the  prerogatives  and  gifts  of  the  apostles.  Hence 
the  doctrine  that  none  but  the  bishops  could  administer  a 
valid  ordination ;  for  they,  by  being  constituted  the  suc- 
cessors of  the  apostles,  had  alone  the  power,  by  the  laying  on 
of  the  hands,  to  impart  a  similar  gift,  with  ability  to  trans- 
mit it  unimpaired  to  others.  In  order  more  deeply  to 
impress  the  new  doctrine  upon  the  minds  of  the  people,  or 
to  inspire  them  with  a  firmer  belief  in  it,  they  took  care 

30  Potestas  Apostolis  data  est.  .  .  .  et  episcopis,  qui  eis  vicaria  ordina- 
tione  successerunt,— Ct/j3na?i,  Ep.  75. 


298  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

also  to  administer  the  rite  of  ordination  with  the  appear- 
ance of  greater  formality  and  solemnity.  This,  in  all 
probability,  was  the  true  reason  for  the  custom  of  saying, 
in  the  laying  on  of  the  hands,  Accipe  Sanctum  Spiritum, 
Receive  the  Holy  Ghost ! 

"In  the  same  connection  came  also  the  suggestion,  that 
it  was  important,  not  merely  for  the  bishops,  but  for  the 
presbyters  and  deacons  also  to  receive  ordination. ^^  They 
were  accordingly  ordained.  The  subordinate  orders  who 
had  lately  been  instituted  in  the  clergy,  received  also  a 
kind  of  ordination.  For,  so  far  as  the  people  could  be  im- 
pressed with  a  sense  of  the  mysterious  influence  of  this 
ceremony,  they  would  regard  him  who  had  received  the 
ordinance  as  another  being,  no  longer  on  an  equality  with 
them  ;  and  so  the  great  end  designed  by  all  these  things 
would  be  accomplished — that  of  impressing  more  deeply 
upon  the  minds  of  the  people  that  the'' clergy  are  a  peculiar 
class  of  persons^  set  apart  by  God  himself  as  a  distinct  order 
in  the  church^^^ 

{h)  The  clergy  manifest  an  intolerant,  persecuting 
spirit. 

It  is  the  legitimate  effect  of  such  pretensions  as  have 
been  specified  in  the  foregoing  article.  Dissent  from  their 
doctrines  becomes  a  denial  of  God's  truth ;  disobedience  to 
their  authority,  rebellion  against  God ;  and  heresy,  the 
most  heinous  of  sins.  Accordingly,  the  great  strife  now  is 
to  guard  against  the  spread  of  heretical  opinions.  He  who 
ventures  to  promulgate  them,  fails  not  to  draw  down  upon 
himself  the  severest  penalties  of  prelatical  power.  The 
history  of  the  church,  from  the  fourth  century,  downward, 
is  little  else  than  a  tedious  recital  of  endless  discussions  .of 

31  Cyprian  at  least  admonished  the  deacons  to  remember  that  God  ap- 
pointed the  apostles,  i,  e.,  the  bishops,  but  the  deacons  were  constituted 
the  ministers  of  the  church  by  the  apostles.  Apostolos,  id  est  episcopos 
Dominus  elegit  j  Diaconos  autem  apostoJi  sibi  constituerent  ministros. — 
Ep.  9.  32  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  pp.  157—163. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  299 

forms  of  expression  and  of  doctrines,  by  which  the  church 
is  perpetually  agitated,  together  with  a  humiliating  exhi- 
bition of  the  bigotry  and  fiery  zeal  with  which  the  charge 
of  heresy  was  prosecuted.  Many,  according  to  Epiphanius, 
were  expelled  from  the  church  for  a  single  word  or  two, 
which,  in  the  phraseology  of  it,  might  seem  to  be  contrary 
to  the  faith. 33  The  charges  were  frequently  groundless, 
often  contemptible;  and  so  multifarious,  withal,  that  it  might 
be  difficult  to  say  what  in  human  conduct  or  belief  has  not 
been  branded  as  heresy.  For  a  priest  to  appear  in  worship 
without  his  surplice  was  heresy. 34  To  fast  on  Saturday 
or  Sunday,  "heresy,  and  a  damnable  thing." 35  And  yet 
this  indefinite,  indescribable  sin,  called  heresy,  was  enough, 
not  only  to  expel  one  from  the  church,  but  to  drive  him 
into  exile  from  his  kindred  and  his  country,  the  victim  of 
relentless  intolerance.  This  zeal  for  truth  was  quickened, 
also,  by  that  avarice  which  seized  upon  his  house,  his 
lands,  his  property  of  every  description,  and  confiscated  it 
for  the  benefit,  ostensibly,  of  the  church,  but  really,  as  a 
gratuity  to  the  pious  zeal  of  his  clerical  persecutors. 36 
When  this  failed  to  reach  him,  the  arm  and  the  sword  of 
civil  justice  were  invoked  against  him.  Thus  was  he  per- 
secuted, even  until,  and  unto  death,  by  the  exterminating 
zeal  of  prelatical  bigotry.  The  reader  will  find  in  the 
Codex  of  Theodosius  enough  to  verify  all,  and  much  more 
than  has  been  said  on  this  subject;  or  in  the  ancient  history 
of  Socrates,  to  say  nothing  of  the  modern  histories  of 
Neander,  and  others. 

33  Epist.  ad  Johau.  Hieros.,  Vol,  II,  Op.,  p.  314.  The  least  deviation  from 
the  prescribed  formularies  and  creeds  of  the  church  was  heresy,  according 
to  the  famous  law  of  Arcadius,  A.  D.  395.  Haeritici  sunt  qui  vel  levl  ar- 
gumente  a  judicio  cathoiicae  religionis  et  tramite  detecti  fuerint  deviare. 
—Cod.  Theodos.,  L.  16,  tit.  V,  de  Haeret.,  6,  28. 

34  Apoph.  Pat.  apud  Cotelerium,  T.  1,  Mon.  Graec,  p.  684. 

35  JNomo  (Janon,  Gr.  apud  eundem,  c.  129. 

36Cod.  Theodos.,  L.  16,tit.  5,  6,  43,  52,  37.  Socrat.,  7,  7.  A  full  state- 
ment of  these  persecutions  is  given  in  Vol.  VI,  p.  118.     Leipsic^  1743. 


300  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

And  yet,  under  this  treatment,  as  might  have  been  fore- 
seen, heresies  came  up  into  the  church  like  the  frogs  of 
Egypt.  Epiphanius,  who,  in  the  fourth  century,  wrote 
several  books  against  heresies,  announces  no  less  than 
eighty  distinct  kinds  of  heresy.  But  the  most  obnoxious 
feature  of  this  rage  against  heresy,  is,  that  it  often  became 
only  a  persecuting  intolerance  of  the  pious,  whose  religious 
life  rebuked  the  godless  ministry  that  was  over  them. 
"  One  may  see,"  says  Jerome,  "  in  most  of  the  cities, 
bishops  and  presbyters,  who,  when  they  perceive  the  laity 
to  seek  the  society  of  the  pious,  and  hospitably  to  entertain 
them,  immediately  become  jealous,  and  murmur  against 
them,  lay  them  under  bans,  and  thrust  them  out  of  the 
church ;  so  that  one  can  do  no  more  than  what  the  bishop 
or  overseer  does.  But  to  live  a  virtuous  life  is  sure  to 
provoke  the  displeasure  of  these  priests;  so  unmerciful  are 
they  towards  these  poor  men,  and  seize  them  by  the  neck, 
as  if  they  would  draw  them  away  from  all  that  is  good, 
and  harass  them  with  all  manner  of  persecutions."  ^7 

3.   State  of  religion  under  the  hierarchy. 

The  preceding  remarks  have  been  made,  with  reference, 
particularly,  to  the  mutual  relations  of  the  clergy  and  the  laity 
under  this  government,  and  the  practical  effects  of  it  upon 
them  both.  The  inquiry  now  is,  in  regard  to  their  religious 
character,  and  the  state  of  morals,  and  religion  generally  in 
the  church.  One  might  gladly  pass  in  silence  over  this 
view  of  the  subject.  We  surely  have  no  pleasure  in  con- 
templating the  deformities  of  the  Christian  character,  in 
any  circumstances ;  much  less  in  reciting  the  general 
degeneracy  of  the  church  in  this  age,  and  the  shocking 
immoralities  which  so  frequently  dishonored  the  lives  of 
all  classes,  both  of  the  clergy  and  the  people.  One  might 
almost  wish,  that,  in  the  lapse  of  time,  a  veil,  even  of  deeper 
darkness,  had  been  spread  over  the  church,  so  that  her 

37  Comment,  in  Epist.  1  ad  Tit. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  301 

deformity  had  been  seen  no  more.  But  it  is  seen  and 
known ;  and  it  remains  for  us  to  pause,  not  to  exult  over 
the  fall  of  the  church,  but  to  take  warning  from  the  exam- 
ple, and  to  guard  against  a  similar  catastrophe. 

The  great  evil  of  her  organization  was,  that  it  opened 
the  way  for  the  introduction  of  irreligious  men  into  the 
ministry,  and  offered  m.any  inducements  to  them  to  enter 
into  the  sacred  service  of  the  church.  It  offered  to  the 
aspiring  the  fairest  prospect  of  preferment  to  honor,  wealth, 
and  power,  both  civil  and  ecclesiastical;  and  the  necessary 
consequence  was  a  degenerate  ministry.  Planck,  with 
great  propriety,  remarks :  "  It  was  a  thing  of  course,  that 
all  would  strive  for  admission  into  that  order  which  was  in 
the  enjoyment  of  such  wealth,  and  power,  and  distinction."  38 
This  was  the  great  evil  of  this  whole  system  of  church 
government.  Hinc  illi  prima  mail  lobes ^ — hence,  the  source 
and  fountain  of  that  tide  of  corruption  which  came  in  upon 
the  church  like  an  overwhelming  flood. ^^  The  instances 
that  have  already  been  mentioned,  clearly  indicate  the 
degeneracy  of  the  clergy,  which  appears  more  fully  in  the 
following  particulars. 

{a)  Their  pride;  their  haughty,  supercilious,  and  osten- 
tatious bearing. 

Every  effort  was  made  to  exalt  the  dignity  of  the  bishop. 
They  assumed  the  title  of  priests,  high-priests,  apostles, 
successors  of  the  apostles;  their  highness,  their  excellence, 
their  worthiness,  their  reverence,  the  enthroned,  the  height 
of  the  highest  dignity,  the  culminating  point  of  pontifical 
glory; — these  are  the  terms  of  base  adulation  employed  to 
set  forth  the  dignity  of  these  ministers  of  Christ. '^'^  They 
have  a  separate  seat,  and  a  princely  throne  in  the  church. 

38  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  332. 

39  Comp.  Mosheim,  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  Ill,  §  25. 

40  Pertsch,  Can.  Recht.,  49.  More  at  length,  in  his  Kirch.  Hist.,  Saec. 
II,  c.  3,  §  15,  16;  18. 

26 


302  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

All  rise  to  do  them  reverence  as  they  come  in,  and  stand 
until  the  bishops  are  seated,  and  often  are  required  to  stand 
in  the  presence  of  the  bishops. ^^  They  are  decked  out  in 
gorgeous  apparel,  and  even  suspend  sacred  relics  from 
their  shoulders,  to  impress  the  multitude  with  a  more  pro- 
found reverence  for  their  order.^^  »  The  bishops,"  says 
Jerome,  A.  D.  400,  "  by  their  pride  and  their  base  deeds, 
are  a  reproach  to  their  name.  In  the  place  of  humility 
they  manifest  pride,  as  though  they  had  acquired  honor 
and  not  disgrace ;  and  whenever  they  perceive  one  to  have 
gained  an  influence  by  rightly  handling  the  word  of  God, 
they  seek,  by  detraction,  to  oppose  him.  The  people  of 
God  are  dispersed  by  the  abounding  immoralities  and 
heresies  of  the  day,  while  no  good  shepherd  appears,  to 
lay  down  his  life  for  the  sheep ;  but  they  are  all  hirelings, 
watching  only  for  gain  from  the  flock,  and  when  they  see 
the  wolf  coming  they  flee.'"'^ 

41  The  following  canon  of  the  council  of  Macon,  A.  D.  581,  dictated,  as 
they  gravely  tell  us,  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  is  sufficient  to  illustrate  the  arti- 
fices of  this  kind  to  secure  the  respect  of  the  people  : — Et  quia  ordination! 
sacerdotum  annuente  deo  congruit  de  omnibus  disponere  et  causis  singulis 
honestum  terminum  dare,  ut  per  hos  reverentissimos  canones  et  praeteri- 
torum  canonum  viror  ac  florida  germina  maturis  fructibus  enitescant,  sta- 
uimus  ut  si  quis  saecularium  quempiam  clericorum  honoratorum  in  itinera 
obvium  habuerit,  usque  ad  inferiorem  gradum  honoris  veneranter  sicut 
condecet  Christianum  illi  colla  subdat,  per  cujus  officia  et  obsequia  fide- 
lissima  christianitatis  jura  promeruit.  Et  si  quidem  ille  saecularis  equo 
vehitur  clericusque  similiter,  saecularis  galerum  de  capite  auferat  et  clerico 
sincerae  salutationis  munus  adhibeat.  Si  vero  clericus  pedes  graditur  et 
saecularis  vehitur  equo  sublimis,  illico  ad  terram  defluat  et  debitum  hono- 
rem  praedicto  clerico  sincerae  caritatis  exhibeat,  ut  deus,  qui  vera  caritas 
est  in  utrisque  laetetur,  et  dilectioni  suae  utrumque  adsciscat.  Qui  vero 
haec  quae  spiriiu  sancto  dictante  sancita  sunt  transgredi  voluerit,  ab 
ecclesiae  quam  in  suis  ministris  dehonorat,  quamdiu  episcopus  illius 
ecclesiae  voluerit  suspendatur. — C  .15,  Brum,  Vol.  II,  p.  254.  The  grada- 
tions of  rank,  which  were  observed  with  so  much  precision,  were  made 
subservient  to  the  same  end,  and  indicate  the  same  spirit.  Comp.  Planck, 
1^  p.  358—368. 

42  Cone.  Bracar.,  3,  c.  5. 

43  Lib.  2,  in  Ezech.,  c.  34,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  943. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  303 

(b)  Their  ignorance,  and  incompetence  rightly  to  dis- 
charge the  duties  of  their  office. 

The  clerical  office,  and  especially  that  of  a  bishop,  has 
become  an  object  of  covetous  desire,  for  reasons  wholly 
unlike  those  which  made  it  desirable  in  the  eyes  of  the 
apostle.  The  consequence  is,  that  by  favoritism,  intrigue, 
and  cunning,  many  find  their  way  into  office  who  are 
wholly  unqualified  for  it ;  and  the  church  is  afflicted  with 
an  incompetent  and  unworthy  ministry. ^'^  While  mere 
boys,  they  were  sometimes  invested  with  the  clerical  office, 
so  that  the  fourth  council  of  Toletum,  A.  D.  633,  very 
properly  provides  for  their  education,  and  training  for  their 
duties. 4^  "No  physician,"  says  Gregory  Nazianzen,  A.  D. 
370,  "  finds  employment  until  he  has  acquainted  himself 
with  the  nature  of  diseases;  no  painter,  until  he  has  learned 
to  mix  colors,  and  acquired  skill  in  the  use  of  his  pencil. 
But  a  bishop  is  easily  found.  No  preparation  is  requisite 
for  his  office.  In  a  single  day  we  make  one  a  priest,  and 
exhort  him  to  be  wise  and  learned,  while  he  knows  nothing, 
and  brings  no  needful  qualification  for  his  office,  but  a  de- 
sire to  be  a  bishop. '^6  They  are  teachers,  while  yet  they 
have  to  learn  the  rudiments  of  religion.  Yesterday,  im- 
penitent, irreligious  ;  and  to-day,  priests ;  old  in  vice  ;  in 
knowledge,  young." '^'^  "They  are,  in  their  ministry,  dull; 
in  evil  speaking,  active ;  in  study,  much  at  leisure ;  in 
seductions,  busy;  in  love,  cold;  in  factions,  powerful;  in 
hatred  and  enmity,  constant;  in  doctrine,  wavering.  They 
profess  to  govern  the  church,  but  have  need  themselves  to 
be  governed  by  others."  ^^ 

44Conc.  To].,  4,  c.  19. 

45  Nos,  et  divinae  legis,  et  conciliorum  praecepti  immemores  infantes  et 
pueros,  levitas  facimus  ante  legitimam  aetatem  ante  experientiam  vitae. — 
Cone.  Tol.,  4,  c.  20. 

46  Orat.  20,  De  Basil.,  Ed.  Colon.,  1590,  p.  335. 

47  Orat.  21.     In  laud  Athanas.,  p.  378. 

48  Sidonius  Apollinaris,  A.  D.  486,  Lib.  7,  Ep.  9.  Biblioth.  Vet.  Pat.  VI, 
p.  1112.    Comp.  Mosheim,  De  Rebus  Christ.,  Saec.  Ill,  ^  26. 


304  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

(c)  The  total  neglect  of  Christian  discipline,  and  the 
general  corruption  of  the  church,  are  the  necessary  conse- 
quences of  a  secular  ministry. 

In  this  respect,  the  state  of  the  church  appears  in  melan- 
choly contrast  with  its  early  purity.  "  Formerly,  the  church 
of  Christ  was  distinguished  from  the  world  hy  her  piety. 
Then,  the  walk  of  all,  or  of  the  most  Christians  was  holy, 
unlike  that  of  the  irreligious.  But  now  are  Christians 
as  base,  and,  if  possible,  even  worse  than  heretics  and 
heathen."  ^^  "  How  unlike  themselves  are  Christians 
now,"  says  Salvianus,  A.  D.  460.  "How  fallen  from  what 
they  once  were !  when  we  might  rejoice,  and  account  the 
church  as  quite  pure,  if  it  had  only  as  many  good  as  bad 
men  in  it.  But  it  is  hard  and  sad  to  say,  that  the  church, 
which  ought,  in  all  things,  to  be  well  pleasing  to  God,  does 
little  else  than  provoke  his  displeasure."  ^^  This  is  but  a 
faint  sketch  of  his  complaint.  Much  more  to  the  same 
effect  is  said  by  this  writer,  and  confirmed  by  others,  which 
we  gladly  pass  in  silence.  Enough  of  this  sad  tale  of  the 
degeneracy  of  the  church,  of  which  the  half  has  not  been 
told.  "No  language,"  says  Chrysostom,  "can  describe  the 
angry  contentions  of  Christians,  and  the  corruption  of 
morals  that  prevailed,  from  the  time  of  Constantino  to  that 
of  Theodosius."5i 

Of  grosser  enormities  we  forbear  to  speak.  Much  that 
is  recorded,  both  of  the  clergy  and  the  people,  in  the  period 
now  under  consideration,  cannot,  with  propriety,  be  trans- 
ferred to  these  pages.  Suffice  it  to  say,  there  is  evidence 
enough  to  show  that  a  shocking  degeneracy  of  morals 
pervaded  all  classes  of  society.  It  began,  confessedly,  with 
the  clergy, — in  their  worldliness  and  irreligion,  their  neg- 
lect of  duty,  their  departure  from  the  faith,  and  corrupt 

49  Chrysostom,  Horn.  49,  in  Math.,  Vol.  VI,  p.  204.  Opus  imp.,  Horn, 
in  Ps.  61,  Vol.  1,  p.  195. 

^0  Lib.  6.    De  Gub.  Dei  in  Biblioth.  Pat.  Vet.,  Vol.  VIII,  p.  362,  seq. 
51  Hom.  49,  in  Math.,  p.  202.    Opus  imperfectum. 


THE    METROPOLITAN    GOVERNMENT.  305 

example.^2  From  the  time  of  Coiistantine,  the  tide  of 
corruption,  which  had  begun  to  set  in  upon  the  church, 
became  deep  and  strong,  and  continued  to  rise  and  swell, 
until  it  had  well-nigh  overwhelmed  the  church.  There 
were  still  examples,  of  men  high  in  office  in  the  church, 
who  nobly  strove  to  turn  back  this  flood  of  iniquity;  but 
they  too  frequently  strove  in  vain,  as  their  lamentations 
over  the  degeneracy  of  the  church  too  plainly  show.  In  the 
church  of  Christ  there  still  remained,  no  doubt,  many  of  his 
faithful  followers,  who  have,  in  heaven,  their  high  reward, 
however  history  may  have  failed  to  record  the  honored 
memorial  of  their  virtues. 

Wearied,  however,  with  the  oppressive  hand  of  prelati- 
cal  power  that  was  upon  her,  and  sickened  at  the  sight  of 
the  ungodliness  which  had  come  up  into  the  church,  and 
sat  enthroned  in  her  high  places,  the  pure  spirit  of  piety 
withdrew,  in  silent  sadness,  from  the  church  to  the  cloister- 
ed cell,  drew  the  curtains,  and  reposed  in  her  secret  recess, 
through  the  long  night  of  darkness  that  settled  upon  the 
world. 

This  religious  declension,  of  which  we  have  spoken,  it 
should  be  well  considered,  could  not  have  come  over  the 
church  so  generally  through  the  operation  of  any  one  cause 
alone.  It  is  the  combined  result  of  various  causes.  But 
that  the  ecclesiastical  polity  that  early  supplanted  the 
government  originally  established  by  the  apostles,  was  one 
efficient  cause  of  this  degeneracy,  we  cannot  doubt.  It 
filled  the  church  with  corrupt  and  unworthy  members,  and 
gave  her  an  ignorant,  ambitious  priesthood,  equally  degen- 
erate and  corrupt. 

The  object  of  the  Christian  emperors  was  to  bring  all 
their  subjects  to  embrace  Christianity.  Bat  they  totally 
mistook  the  means  by  which  this  work  was  to  be  accom- 

62  Chrysostom  expressly  says,  that  they  were  the  cause  of  this  degene- 
racy of  the  laity.     In  Math.  23.     Comp.,  also,  Catal.  Test.  Verit.,  p.  77. 
26* 


306  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

plished.  They  sought  to  do  it  by  state  patronage;  by 
making  a  professed  faith  in  Christ  the  passport  to  favor 
and  to  power.  To  enter  into  the  church  of  Christ,  was, 
accordingly,  to  enjoy  the  favor  and  protection  of  the  gov- 
ernment ;  to  hold  her  offices,  was  to  bear  rule  in  the  state. 
The  consequence  was,  that  multitudes  pressed  up  to  the 
altar  of  the  Lord,  eager  to  be  invested  with  the  robes  and 
the  office  of  the  Christian  ministry,  who  had  nothing  of  its 
spirit.^3 

Such  was  the  wayward  policy,  the  fatal  mistake  of  the 
first  Christian  emperors.  Such  were  its  disastrous  results. 
My  kingdom,  saith  Christ,  is  not  of  this  world.  Chris- 
tianity, though  mingling  freely  in  the  affairs  of  men,  like 
its  great  Author,  works  its  miracles  of  mercy  and  of  grace, 
by  powers  that  are  hidden  and  divine.  It  stoops  to  no 
carnal  policy,  no  state  chicanery,  no  corrupt  alliances; 
while,  like  an  angel  of  mercy,  it  goes  through  the  earth, 
for  the  healing  of  the  nations.  To  borrow  the  profound 
thoughts  and  beautiful  language  of  Robert  Hall,  "  Chris- 
tianity will  civilize,  it  is  true;  but  it  is  only  when  it  is 
allowed  to  develop  the  energies  by  which  it  sanctifies. 
Christianity  will  inconceivably  ameliorate  the  condition  of 
being.  Who  doubts  it  ?  Its  universal  prevalence,  not  in 
name,  but  in  reality,  will  convert  this  world  into  a  semi- 
paradisaical  state ;  but  it  is  only  while  it  is  permitted  to 
prepare  its  inhabitants  for  a  better.  Let  her  be  urged  to 
forget  her  celestial  origin  and  destiny, — to  forget  that  she 
came  from  God,  and  returns  to  God;  and,  whether  employed 
by  the  artful  and  enterprising,  as  the  instrument  of  estab- 
lishing a  spiritual  empire  and  dominion  over  mankind,  or 
by  the  philanthropist,  as  the  means  of  promoting  their  civi- 
lization and  improvement, — she  resents  the  foul  indignity, 
claps  her  wings  and  takes  her  flight,  leaving  nothing  but  a 
base  and  sanctimonious  hypocrisy  in  her  room."^^ 

53  Comp.  Sermon  by  Thomas  Hardy,  D.  D.    Cited  in  Dr.  Brown's  Law 
of  Christ;  pp.  511,  512.  54  Address  to  Eustace  Carey. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  PATRIARCHAL  AND  THE  PAPAL  GOVERNMENT. 

I.     The  patriarchal  government. 

This  form  of  the  hierarchy  we  shall  dismiss  with  a 
"Very  brief  notice.  The  principles  on  which  it  was  based, 
and  its  characteristics,  were  essentially  the  same  as  those 
of  the  metropolitan.  The  state  of  the  church  under  this 
organization  has  of  necessity  been  anticipated  in  the  pre- 
ceding remarks.  It  was  only  a  farther  concentration  of 
ecclesiastical  power,  another  stage  in  the  process  of  cen- 
tralization, which  was  fast  bringing  the  church  under  the 
absolute  despotism  of  papacy.  Man  naturally  aspires  to 
the  exercise  of  arbitrary  power ;  or,  if  he  must  divide  his 
authority  with  others,  he  seeks  to  make  that  number  as 
small  as  possible.  This  disposition  had  already  manifested 
itself  in  the  church.  In  many  of  the  provinces  there  were 
ecclesiastical  aspirants  among  the  higher  orders  of  the 
clergy,  who,  even  to  the  fifth  century,  had  not  established 
an  undisputed  title  to  the  prerogatives  of  metropolitans. 
But  the  continual  search  and  strife  of  the  bishops  for  a 
greater  consolidation  of  ecclesiastical  power  ended  in  the 
establishment  of  an  ecclesiastical  oligarchy  in  the  fifth  cen- 
tury, under  the  form  of  the  patriarchal  government.  ^ 

1  Comp.  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass,,  1,  pp.  598—624.  Ziegler's  Versuch., 
&c.,  pp.  164 — 365. 


SOS  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

In  the  course  of  the  period  from  the  fourth  to  the  sixth 
century,  arose  four  great  ecclesiastical  divisions,  whose 
primates  bore  the  title  of  patriarch.  These  were  Eome, 
Constantinople,  Alexandria  and  Antioch.  Few  topics  of 
antiquity  have  been  the  subject  of  so  much  controversy  as 
that  relating  to  the  patriarchal  system,  as  may  be  seen  in 
the  works  of  Salmasius,  Petavius,  Sismondi,  Scheelstrate, 
Richter  and  others.  Suffice  it  to  say,  however,  that  the 
council  of  Chalcedon,  A.  D.  451,  established  five  patri- 
archates. The  councils  of  Nice,  A.  D.  325,  c.  6,  7,  of 
Constantinople  I,  A.  D.  381,  c.  2,  5,  and  of  Ephesus,  A.  D. 
531,  Act.  7,  had  already  conferred  the  distinction  without 
the  title.  The  incumbents  of  these  Episcopal  sees  were 
already  invested  with  civil  powers.  Theodosius  the  Great 
conferred  upon  Constantinople  the  second  rank,  a  measure 
greatly  displeasing  to  Rome,  and  against  which  Alexandria 
and  Antioch  uniformly  protested.  Jerusalem  had  the 
honor  and  dignity  of  a  patriarchate,  but  not  the  rights  and 
privileges.2 

The  aspirations  of  prelatical  ambition  after  sole  and 
supreme  power  are  sufficiently  manifest  in  that  bitter  con- 
test, which  was  so  long  maintained  by  the  primates  of 
Rome  and  Constantinople,  for  the  title  of  universal  patri- 
arch or  head  of  the  church  universal. ^  Great  political 
events  finally  decided  this  controversy  in  the  course  of  the 
fifth  and  sixth  centuries  in  the  West,  and  in  the  East  in 
the  seventh  century  in  favor  of  the  church  of  Rome.  This 
decision  resulted  in  the  supremacy  of  the  Pope  and  the 
establishment  of  the  papal  system. 

2  Hence  the  Romans  were  accustomed  to  say,  Patriarchae  en  ecclesia 
primitus  fuere,  tres  per  se  et  ex  natura  sua, — Romanus,  Alexandrinus  et 
Antiochenus;  duo  per  accidens,Constantinopolitanus  et  Hierosoly  mitanus. 
Comp.  Justinia.,  Nov.  Constit.,  123.  Schroekhs,  Kirch.  Gesch.  Thl.,  17,  pp. 
45,  46.  Comp.  Art.  Patriarch,  in  the  works  of  Augusti,  Siegel,  Rheinwald, 
W.  Bohmer,  &c. 

^  IJaTQtuQXOS  TTjg  oi;<oi'/-/£y?/g,  episcopusoecumenicus,  universalis 
ecclesiae,  papa,  &c. 


THE    PAPAL    GOVERNMENT.  309 

II.     The  papal  government. 

This  was  the  last  refinement  of  cunning  and  self-aggran- 
dizement ;  the  culminating  point  of  ecclesiastical  usurp- 
ation, towards  which  the  government  of  the  church  under 
the  Episcopal  hierarchy  had  been  approaching  for  several 
centuries.  It  was  an  ecclesiastical  monarchy,  a  spiritual 
despotism,  which  completed  the  overthrow  of  the  authority 
of  the  church  as  a  sovereign  and  independent  body.^ 

The  bishop  of  Rome  was  originally  indebted,  for  his 
authority  and  power,  to  the  emperor  of  the  East ;  an  in- 
debtedness which  he  continued  for  some  time  to  feel.  The 
bishop  of  Constantinople,  on  the  other  hand,  acted  with  more 
independence.  In  some  instances,  he  successfully  resisted 
the  will  of  the  emperor.  But  the  decline  of  the  Eastern 
empire  greatly  promoted  the  ambitious  designs  of  the 
bishop  of  Rome,  and  the  extension  of  his  power  in  Italy. 
Meanwhile  the  territorial  government  of  the  Eastern 
church  was  greatly  reduced  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  cen- 
turies ;  the  hopes  of  Constantinople  and  of  her  patriarch 
suffered  a  corresponding  reduction.  Territory  after  terri- 
tory fell  away  and  was  lost.  The  dioceses  of  Antioch, 
Jerusalem  and  Alexandria  were  overrun  with  Mahomedan- 
ism.  Thrace  became  tributary  to  Bulgaria,  and  Constanti- 
nople herself  was  brought  into  conflict  with  the  Sacarens. 

The  bishop  of  Rome  now  began  his  splendid  career. 
It  commenced  with  the  overthrow  of  the  emperor's  authority 
in  Italy,  and  ended  in  results  auspicious  to  this  aspiring 
prelate  beyond  his  most  ardent  expectation.  The  incursion 
of  the  Longobards  into  Italy  favored  greatly  the  designs 
of  the  Roman  bishop;  so  that  without  the  concurrence 
of  this  invasion  he  might  never  have  realized  the  fulfil- 
ment of  his  hopes.  The  important  results  of  this  circum- 
stance  to    the    Pope,   the    decline  of  the   Eastern  empire 

4  Comp.  Planck,  Gesell.  Verfass.,  1,  pp.624— 673.    Ziegler's  Versuch., 
&c.,  pp.  365—402. 


310  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

by  the  falling  off  of  different  provinces,  and  the  influence 
of  Gregory  and  Zacharius  in  promoting  the  papal  suprem- 
acy by  means  of  the  war  respecting  image  worship  and 
other  devices,  is  very  clearly  exhibited  by  Ziegler.^  But 
Gregory  III  surpassed  all  his  predecessors  by  his  political 
manoeuvres.  After  making  use  of  the  invasion  of  the 
Longobards  to  reduce  the  power  of  the  emperor,  he  took 
care  to  have  them  removed  from  the  neighborhood  of 
Rome,  if  not  from  all  Italy.  Their  presence  had  been 
the  means  of  inspiring  the  people  with  a  belief  in  the 
holiness  of  the  Pope.  The  Franks  were  also  deeply  im- 
pressed with  the  same  sentiments.  It  was  accordingly 
the  policy  of  Gregory  to  throw  himself  into  the  arms  of 
the  brave  Charles  Martell,  that  so  the  secular  government 
of  Rome  might  be  removed  as  far  as  possible  from  the 
city.  His  next  political  manoeuvre  was,  by  the  aid  of  the 
Franks,  to  expel  the  Longobards  entirely  from  Italy.  This 
crafty  alliance  of  the  Pope  with  Pepin,  proved  advanta- 
geous only  to  the  designs  of  the  prelate,  and  the  chief 
means  of  establishing  his  secular  power.^ 

This  important  point  in  history  distinctly  marks  the 
date  of  the  establishment  of  the  papal  power  in  Rome, 
which  in  the  middle  ages  rose  to  such  a  pitch  that  all 
Europe  trembled  before  it. 

Thus,  as  we  have  seen,  ecclesiastical  history  introduces 
first  to  our  notice,  single  independent  churches ;  then,  to 
churches  having  several  dependent  branches ;  then,  to 
diocesan  churches ;  then,  to  metropolitan  or  provincial 
churches ;  and  then,  to  national  churches  attempered  to 
the  civil  power.  In  the  end,  we  behold  two  great  divisions 
of  ecclesiastical  empire,  the  Eastern  and  the  Western,  now 

5  Versuch.,  &c.,  p.  367. 

6  Comp.  Ziegler  as  above.  Bowers^  Gesch.  der  Papste,  4v.  Thl.  p.  398, 
seq.  Le  Bret,  Gesch.  von  Ital.,  Iv,  Thl.,  p.  36,  seq.  Especially  HqII- 
mann,  UrsprUnge  der  Verfass.,  in  Mittelalter.  Ranke's  Hist,  of  Popes, 
B.  1,  c.  1,  §  7. 


THE    PAPAL    GOVERNMENT.  311 

darkly  intriguing,  now  fearfully  struggling  with  each 
other  for  the  mastery,  until  at  last  the  hypothesis  of  the 
unity  of  the  church  is  consummated  in  the  sovereignty  of 
the  pope  of  Rome,  who  alone  sits  enthroned  in  power, 
claiming  to  be  the  head  of  the  church  on  earth.  The 
government  of  the  church  began  in  a  democracy,  allowing 
to  all  of  its  constituents  the  most  enlarged  freedom  of  a 
voluntary  religious  association.  It  ended  in  an  absolute 
and  iron  despotism.  The  gradations  of  ecclesiastical  or- 
ganization, through  which  it  passed,  were,  from  congrega- 
tional to  parochial— parochial  to  diocesan — diocesan  to 
metropolitan — metropolitan  to  patriarchal — patriarchal  to 
papal. 

The  corruptions  and  abominations  of  the  church,  through 
that  long  night  of  dreadful  darkness  which  succeeded  the 
triumphs  of  the  Pope  of  Rome,  were  inexpressibly  horri- 
ble. The  record  of  them  may  more  fitly  lie  shrouded  in 
a  dead  language,  than  be  disclosed  to  the  light  in  the  living 
speech  of  men.  The  successors  of  St.  Peter,  as  they  call 
themselves,  were  frequently  nominated  to  the  chair  of 
"  his  holiness "  by  women  of  infamous  and  abandoned 
lives.  Not  a  few  of  them  were  shamefully  immoral ; 
and  some,  monsters  of  wickedness.  Several  were  heretics, 
and  others  were  deposed  as  usurpers.  And  yet  this  church 
of  Rome,  "  with  such  ministers,  and  so  appointed, —  a 
church  corrupt  in  every  part  and  every  particular — individ-. 
ually  and  coUectiv^'ely, — in  doctrine,  in  discipline,  in  prac- 
tice,"— this  church,  prelacy  recognizes  in  the  period  now 
under  consideration  as  the  only  representative  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  invested  with  all  his  authority,  and 
exercising  divine  powers  on  earth  !  She  boasts  her  ordi- 
nances, her  sacraments,  transmitted  for  a  thousand  years, 
unimpaired,  uncontaminated,  through  such  hands  !  High 
Church  Episcopacy  proudly  draws  her  own  apostolical 
succession  through  this  pit  of  pollution,  and  then  the  fol- 


312  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

lowers  of  Christ,  who  care  not  to  receive  such  grace  from 
such  hands,  she  calmly  delivers  over  to  God's  uncovenanted 
mercies  ?  Nay  more,  multitudes  of  this  communion  are 
now  engaged  in  the  strange  work  of  "  unprotestantizing 
the  churches  "  which  have  washed  themselves  from  these 
defilements.  The  strife  is,  with  a  proud  array  of  talents, 
of  learning,  and  of  Episcopal  power,  to  bury  all  spiritual 
religion  again  in  the  grave  of  forms,  to  shroud  the  light  of 
truth  in  the  darkness  of  popish  tradition,  and  to  sink  the 
church  of  God  once  more  into  that  abyss  of  deep  and  dread- 
ful darkness  from  which  she  emerged  at  the  dawn  of  the 
reformation.  In  the  beautiful  and  expressive  language  of 
Milton,  their  strife  is  to  "  re-involve  us  in  that  pitchy  cloud 
of  infernal  darkness  where  we  shall  never  more  see  the 
sun  of  truth  again,  never  hope  for  the  cheerful  dawn, 
never  more  hear  the  bird  of  morning  sing." 


REMAEKS. 

In  connection  with  the  view  which  we  have  taken  of 
the  rise  and  progress  of  the  Episcopal  system  in  the 
ancient  church,  we  have  a  few  things  to  remark  upon  its 
present  characteristics  and  practical  influence.  Episco- 
pacy, as  it  was  in  the  beginning,  appears  to  us  to  have 
been  a  lamentable  departure  from  that  form  of  government 
which  the  churches  assumed  originally,  under  the  guidance 
of  the  apostles.  Episcopacy,  as  it  is  nov/,  though  modified 
in  various  respects,  appears  to  us  still  to  retain  many  of  its 
original  characteristics,  some  of  which  we  have  briefly  to 
suggest. 

1.  We  object  to  Episcopacy,  as  a  departure  from  the 
order  of  the  apostolical  and  primitive  churches. 

To  our  mind,  nothing  is  plainer  than  that  the  govern- 
ment of  the  church,  in  the  beginning,  was  not  Episcopal. 


THE    PAPAL    GOVERNMENT.  313 

And,  though  we  are  not  bound,  by  any  divine  authority,  to 
an  exact  conformity  to  the  primitive  model,  yet  we  cannot 
doubt,  that  the  apostles  were  guided  by  wisdom  from  above, 
in  giving  to  the  churches  a  different  organization,  popular 
in  principle,  simple  in  form,  and  better  suited  to  the  exi- 
gencies of  the  church  in  every  condition  of  society. 

"While,  therefore,  with  so  much  gravity  and  self-compla- 
cency, Episcopacy  talks  of  her  "  adherence  to  the  Holy 
Scriptures,  and  to  apostolical  usage,"  we  must  be  permitted 
to  object  to  her  whole  ecclesiastical  polity,  as  an  innovation 
upon  the  scriptural  system,  and  a  total  departure  from  the 
usage  of  the  apostles,  without  any  good  reason,  or  favor- 
able results. 

2.  We  object  to  Episcopacy,  that  it  had  its  origin,  not  in 
divine  authority,  but  in  human  ambition. 

This  is  the  true  source  from  whence  it  sprang  in  the 
ancient  church.  "  First  ambition  crept  in,  which  at  length 
begat  Antichrist,  set  him  in  the  chair,  and  brought  the 
yoke  of  bondage  upon  the  neck  of  the  church."  This,  to 
our  mind,  is  a  valid  objection  against  Episcopacy.  We 
cannot  persuade  ourselves,  that  a  system,  founded  in  human 
ambition,  and  reared  and  matured  by  human  contrivance 
for  sinister  ends,  should  be  suffered  to  set  aside  that  order 
which  God,  in  the  beginning,  gave  to  the  Christian  church 
through  the  medium  of  Christ  and  his  apostles. 

3.  Episcopacy  removes  the  laity  from  a  just  participation 
in  the  government  and  discipline  of  the  church. 

The  spirit  of  this  system  is  to  concentrate  all  power  in 
the  bishops  and  clergy;  and  there  are  not  wanting  porten- 
tous indications,  that  this  spirit  is  at  work,  and  this  process 
of  centralization  going  on  still  in  our  country.  In  England 
it  was  long  since  completed.  Episcopacy  is  a  govern- 
ment administered  for  the  people, — the  great  expedient  of 
despotism  in  every  form.  The  government  of  the  primi- 
tive church  was  administered  by  the  people, — the  great 
safeguard  of  popular  freedom,  whether  civil  or  religious. 
27 


314  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Discipline  is  also  administered /or  the  church  by  the 
clergy.  But  our  confidence  is  in  the  laity,  as  the  safest 
and  best  guardians  of  the  purity  of  the  church.  We  claim 
for  them  a  right  to  co-operate  with  the  clergy  in  all  meas- 
ures of  discipline  relating  to  their  own  body ;  and  believe 
it  to  be  both  their  right  and  their  duty  to  control  the  cen- 
sures of  the  church.  In  transferring  this  duty  from  the 
laity  to  the  clergy,  Episcopacy  does  great  injustice  to  the 
members  of  the  church,  and  equal  injury  to  the  cause  of 
pure  and  undefiled  religion. 

4.  Episcopacy  creates  unjust  distinctions  among  the 
clergy  whose  character  and  profession  is  the  same. 

The  Scriptures  authorize  no  distinction  in  the  duties, 
privileges,  or  prerogatives  of  bishops,  and  priests,  or  pres- 
byters. The  distinction  is  arbitrary  and  unjust.  It  denies 
to  a  portion  of  the  clergy  the  performance  of  certain  dudes 
for  which  they  are  duly  qualified,  and  to  which  they  are 
fully  entitled  in  common  with  the  bishops.  It  hinders  the 
inferior  clergy  in  the  performance  of  their  proper  ministerial 
duties,  and  degrades  them  in  the  estimation  of  the  people. 

5.  We  cannot  avoid  the  conviction  that  Episcopacy 
gives  play  to  the  bad  passions  of  men. 

We  have  seen  what  mischief  it  wrought  in  the  ancient 
church,  and  we  see  not  why  the  same  causes,  operating 
upon  the  heart  of  man,  should  not  produce  the  same 
results.  Is  not  the  human  heart  open  still  to  pride,  to 
ambition,  to  lust  for  power,  and  love  of  supremacy?  And 
is  there  nothing  in  all  these  Episcopal  grades, — deacon, 
priest,  bishop,  archbishop,  and  what  not,  towering  one 
above  another, — is  there  nothing  in  all  these  to  excite. the 
bad  passions  of  men  ?  And  where  so  much  depends  upon 
patronage  and  Episcopal  favor,  is  there  nothing  to  destroy 
a  manly  independence  of  the  subordinate  grades ;  creating 
in  them  a  cringing  sycophancy  that  moves  in  subservi- 
ency to  the  prelate  ?  Nothing  to  excite  the  discontent,  the 
jealousy,  or  the  envy  of  mortified  ambition  ?    Instead  of  all 


THE    PAPAL    GOVERNMENT.  315 

this  right  hand  and  left  hand,  this  going  before,  and  in 
company,  of  which  Gregory  complains,  give  us  rather  the 
simplicity  of  the  gospel  order,  which  knows  no  such  dis- 
tinction among  the  ministers  of  Christ. 

6.  We  object  to  the  exclusive,  intolerant  spirit  of  Epis- 
copacy. 

This,  to  our  mind,  is  one  of  its  most  obnoxious  charac- 
teristics. That  this  single  church  should  assume  to  be  the 
only  true  church,  and  its  clergy  the  only  authorized  minis- 
ters ;  that  the  only  valid  ordinances  and  sacraments  are 
administered  in  their  communion ;  that  alone  of  all  to 
whom  salvation  by  grace  is  so  freely  published,  they  are 
received  into  covenant  mercy, — all  this  appears  to  us  as 
nothing  else  than  a  proud  and  sanctimonious  'self-right- 
eousness, which  we  can  only  regard  with  unmingled  abhor- 
rence. There  is  an  atrocity  of  character  in  this  spirit, 
which  can  unchurch  the  saints  of  God  of  every  age,  in 
every  Christian  communion,  save  one,  and  consign  them, 
if  not  to  perdition,  to  God's  uncovenanted  mercies ; — in  all 
this  there  is  an  atrocity  of  character,  which,  in  other  days, 
has  found,  as  it  seems  to  us,  its  just  expression  in  the  fires 
of  Smithfield,  and  in  the  slow  torture  of  the  auto-da-fe. 
Episcopacy  holds  no  fellowship,  no  communion  with  us, — ■ 
dissenters.  "  The  Episcopal  church,  deriving  its  Episcopal 
power  in  regular  succession  from  the  holy  apostles,  through 
the  venerable  church  of  England,"  makes  public  declara- 
tion, through  its  bishops,  that  it  has  "  no  ecclesiastical  con- 
nection with  the  followers  of  Luther  and  Calvin."  Be  it 
so.  To  all  this  we  have  no  right  to  object.  But  we  have 
a  right  to  our  own  conclusions  respecting  the  exclusiveness 
of  such  a  religion. 

We  have  already  learned,  from  Planck,  the  able  ex- 
pounder of  the  constitutional  history  of  the  Christian 
church,  the  origin  of  these  high-church  dogmas  in  the 
ancient  hierarchy.  A  profound  expositor  of  the  constitu- 
tional history  of  England  has  also  sketched  the  origin  of 


316  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

these  high  pretensions  in  the  English  church.  They  are 
of  comparatively  recent  origin,  dating  back  only  to  the 
period  of  the  settlement  of  the  Puritans  in  this  country. 
They  sprang,  also,  from  the  same  spirit  for  which  high- 
church  Episcopacy  has  ever  been  so  much  distinguished, — 
that  is,  unmitigated  hatred  of  the  religion  of  the  Puritans. 
"  Laud  and  his  party,  began,  about  the  end  of  Elizabeth's 
reign,  by  preaching  the  divine  right,  as  it  is  called,  or  abso- 
lute indispensability  of  Episcopacy ;  a  doctrine,  of  which 
the  first  traces,  as  I  apprehend,  are  found  about  the  end 
of  Elizabeth's  reign.  They  insisted  on  the  necessity  of 
Episcopal  succession,  regularly  derived  from  the  apostles. 
They  drew  an  inference  from  this  tenet,  that  ordinations 
by  presbyters  were,  in  all  cases,  null."  Of  Lutherans  and 
Calvinists,  they  began  now  to  speak,  "  as  aliens,  to  whom 
they  were  not  at  all  related,  and  schismatics,  with  whom 
they  held  no  communion ;  nay,  as  wanting  the  very  essence 
of  Christian  society.  This  again  brought  them  nearer,  by 
irresistible  consequence,  to  the  disciples  of  Rome,  whom, 
with  becoming  charity,  but  against  the  received  creed  of 
the  Puritans,  and,  perhaps,  against  their  own  articles,  they 
all  acknowledged  to  be  a  part  of  the  catholic  church."''' 

7.  Episcopacy  is  monarchical  and  anti-republican. 

It  is  monarchical  in  form,  monarchical  in  spirit,  and, 
until  transplanted  to  these  states,  has  been,  always  and 
every  where,  the  handmaid  of  monarchy.  And  here  it  is 
a  mere  exotic,  our  own  republican  soil  being  quite  uncon- 
genial to  all  its  native  instincts.  Its  monarchical  tendencies 
and  sympathies  are  clearly  exhibited  by  Hallam,  an  histo- 
rian of  extensive,  various,  and  profound  erudition,  whose 
work  on  the  Constitutional  History  of  England,  Macaulay 
characterizes  as  "  the  most  impartial  book  that  he  ever 
read."  "  The  doctrine  of  passive  obedience.  Episcopacy 
taught  in  the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  even  in  her  homilies. 
To  withstand  the  Catholics,  the  reliance  of  Parliament  was 
'  Hallam's  Constitutional  History,  Vol.  I,  pp,  540,  541. 


THE   PAPAL   GOVERNMENT.  317 

upon  the  '  stern,  intrepid,  and  uncompromising  spirit  of 
Puritanism.'  Of  the  conforming  churchmen,  in  general, 
they  might  well  be  doubtful."  ^ 

The  doctrine  of  the  king's  absolute  authority  was  incul- 
cated by  the  Episcopal  clergy.  "Especially  with  the  high- 
church  party  it  had  become  current."  ^ 

Under  Charles  I,  "  they  studiously  inculcated,  that  resist- 
ance to  the  commands  of  rulers  was,  in  every  conceivable 
instance,  a  heinous  sin.  It  was  taught  in  their  homilies." ^^ 
"It  was  laid  down  in  the  canons  of  convocation,  1606. "^ 

Sibthorp  and  Mainwaring,  "eager  for  preferment,  which 
they  knew  the  readiest  method  to  obtain,  taught  that  the 
king  might  take  the  subject's  money  at  pleasure,  and  that 
no  one  might  refuse  his  demand,  on  penalty  of  damnation." 
And  for  such  true  and  loyal  sentiments,  Mainwaring  was 
honored  with  a  bishopric  by  Charles,  and  Sibthorp  with  an 
inferior  dignity. 

James  considered  Episcopacy  essential  to  the  existence 
of  monarchy,  uniformly  embodying  this  sentiment  in  his 
favorite  aphorism,  "No  bishop,  no  king.''^^ 

Elizabeth  and  her  successors,  says  Macaulay,  "by  con- 
sidering conformity  and  loyalty  as  identical,  at  length  made 
them  so." 

"Charles  himself  says  in  his  letters,  that  he  looks  on 
Episcopacy  as  a  stronger  support  of  monarchical  power 
than  even  an  army.  From  causes  which  we  have  already 
considered,  the  Established  Church  had  been,  since  the 
Reformation,  the  great  bulwark  of  the  prerogative. ^3"  She 
was,  according  to  Macaulay,  for  more  than  one  hundred 
and  fifty  years,  "  the  servile  handmaid  of  monarchy,  the 
steady  enemy  of  public  liberty.  The  divine  right  of  kings, 
and  the  duty  of  passively  obeying  all  their  commands,  were 

8  Hallam's  Const.  Hist.,  Vol.  I,  pp.  262,  263. 

9  Ibid.;  pp.  437,  438.  lo  Ibid.,  p.  264.  "  Ibid.,  pp.  567—570. 

12  NeaPs  History  of  the  Puritans,  Vol.  II,  pp.  43,  44. 

13  Macaulay's  Miscellanies,  Vol.  I,  p.  293.     Boston  ed. 

27* 


318  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

her  favorite  tenets.  She  held  them  firmly,  through  times 
of  oppression,  persecution,  and  licentiousness ;  while  law 
was  trampled  down;  while  judgment  was  perverted;  while 
the  people  were  eaten,  as  though  they  were  bread."  i"* 

Great  objection  was  made  to  the  introduction  of  Episco- 
pacy into  this  country,  on  account  of  its  monarchical  prin- 
ciples and  tendencies,  so  entirely  counter  to  the  popular 
spirit  of  our  government  and  our  religion.  It  was  received, 
at  last,  only  on  condition  of  making  large  concessions  to 
the  spirit  of  our  free  institutions.  In  the  revolutionary 
struggle,  great  numbers  of  that  denomination,  and  a  larger 
proportion  of  their  clergy,  remained  fast  adherents  to  the 
British  crown.  Indeed,  the  monarchical  spirit  of  Episco- 
pacy, and  its  uncongeniality  with  our  free  institutions,  is 
too  obvious  to  need  illustration. i^ 

Our  fathers  came  here  to  establish  "a  state  without  king 
or  nobles,  and  a  church  without  a  bishop."  They  sought 
to  establish  themselves  here,  "  a  people  governed  by  laws 
of  their  own  making,  and  by  rulers  of  their  own  choosing." 
And  here,  in  peaceful  seclusion  from  the  oppression  of 
every  dynasty,  whether  spiritual  or  temporal,  they  became 
an  independent  and  prosperous  commonwealth.  But  what 
affinity,  what  sympathy  has  its  government,  civil  or  relig- 
ious, with  that  of  Episcopacy  ?  the  one,  republican ;  the 
other,  monarchical;  in  sympathy,  in  principle,  in  form, 
they  are  directly  opposed  to  each  other.  We  doubt  not 
that  the  members  of  that  communion  are  firm  friends  to 
our  republican  government;  but  we  must  regard  their 
religion  as  a  strange,  unseemly  anomaly  here ; — a  religious 
government,  arbitrary  and  despotic,  in  the  midst  of  the 
highest  political  freedom;  a  spiritual  despotism  in  the 
heart  of  a  free  republic  I 

14  Macaulay's  Miscellanies,  Vol.  I,  p.  249. 

15  See  an  extract  from  Chandler's  Appeal  on  behalf  of  the  church  of 
England  in  America.  N.Y.,1767.  Cited  in  Smyth's  Eccl.  Republicanism, 
which  concedes  fully  the  monarchical  spirit  of  Episcopacy. 


CHAPTER  XL 

PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 

The  religious  worship  of  the  primitive  Christians  was 
conducted  in  the  same  simplicity  and  freedom  which 
characterized  all  their  ecclesiastical  polity.  They  came 
together  for  the  worship  of  God,  in  the  confidence  of 
mutual  love,  and  prayed,  and  sung,  and  spoke  in  the 
fulness  of  their  hearts.  A  liturgy  and  a  prescribed  form 
of  prayer  were  alike  unknown,  and  inconsistent  with  the 
spirit  of  their  worship. 

In  the  following  chapter,  it  will  be  my  object  to  establish 
the  following  propositions. 

I.  That  the  use  of  forms  of  prayer  is  opposed  to  the  spirit 
of  the  Christian  dispensation. 

II.  That  it  is  opposed  to  the  example  of  Christ  and  of 
his  apostles. 

III.  That  it  is  unauthorized  by  the  instructions  of  Christ 
and  the  apostles. 

IV.  That  it  is  contrary  to  the  simplicity  and  freedom  of 
primitive  worship. 

V.  That  it  was  unknown  in  the  primitive  church. 

I.  The  use  of  forms  of  prayer  is  opposed  to  the  spirit  of 
the  Christian  dispensation. 

"  The  truth,"  says  Christ,  "  shall  make  you  free."  One 
part  of  this  freedom  was  exemption  from  the  burdensome 


320  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

rites  and  formalities  of  the  Jewish  religion.  "  The  Lord's 
free  man"  was  no  longer  bound  to  wear  that  yoke  of 
bondage;  but,  according  to  the  perfect  law  of  liberty, 
James  1:  25.  2:  12,  was  required  only  to  worship  God 
in  spirit  and  in  truth.  Paul  often  reproved  Peter  for  his 
needless  subjection  to  the  bondage  of  the  Jewish  ritual, 
and  his  endeavors  to  impose  this  unauthorized  burden  upon 
his  Christian  converts.  Gal.  2:  4,  seq.  3:  1,  seq.  4:  9, 
seq.  Rom.  10  :  4,  seq.  14 :  5,  6.  Col.  2 :  16—20.  Such 
was  the  perfect  law  of  liberty  which  the  religion  of  Christ 
gave  to  his  followers.  It  imposed  upon  them  no  burden- 
some rites;  it  required  no  prescribed  forms,  with  the 
exception  of  the  simple  ordinances  of  baptism  and  the 
Lord's  supper.  It  required,  simply,  the  homage  of  the 
heart ;  the  worshipping  of  God  in  sincerity  and  in  truth. 
So  taught  our  Saviour  and  his  apostles. 

Indications  of  irregularity  and  disorder  are,  indeed, 
apparent  in  some  of  the  churches  whom  Paul  addresses ; 
particularly  among  the  Corinthians.  1  Cor.  14 :  1,  seq. 
These  irregularities,  however,  he  severely  rebukes,  assuring 
them  that  God  is  not  the  author  of  confusion,  but  of  peace, 
V.  33;  i.  €.,  of  harmony  in  sentiment  and  action,  as 
appears  from  the  context.  He  ends  his  rebuke  by  exhort- 
ing them  to  let  all  things  be  done  decently,  and  in  order; 
declaring,  at  the  same  time,  that  the  things  which  he  writes 
on  this  subject  are  the  commandments  of  God.  v.  37.  He 
commends  the  Colossians,  on  the  other  hand,  for  the  good 
order  and  propriety  which  they  observed;  "joying  and 
beholding  their  order,  and  the  steadfastness  of  their  faith." 
Col.  2 :  5. 

The  freedom  of  the  gospel  was  not  licentiousness.  It 
gave  no  countenance  to  disorder  and  confusion,  in  the 
earliest  assemblies  of  Christians,  convened  for  the  worship 
of  God.  But  it  required  them  to  worship  him  in  spirit 
and  in  truth  ;  in  a  confiding,  filial,  and  aflectionate  spirit. 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  321 

This  is  that  spirit  of  adoption  which  was  given  them,  and 
which,  instead  of  the  timid,  cowering  spirit  of  a  slave, 
taught  them  to  come  with  holy  boldness  to  the  throne  of 
grace ;  and,  in  the  amiable  confidence  of  a  child,  to  say, 
"  Our  Father  who  art  in  heaven." 

We  will  not,  indeed,  assert  that  the  spirit  of  this  precept 
is  incompatible  with  the  use  of  a  form  of  prayer ;  but  we 
must  feel  that  the  warm  and  gushing  emotions  of  a  pious 
heart  flow  not  forth  in  one  unvaried  channel.  Who,  in  his 
favored  moments  of  rapt  communion,  when,  with  unusual 
fervor  of  devotion,  he  draws  near  to  God,  and,  leaning  on 
the  bosom  of  the  Father,  with  all  the  simplicity  of  a  little 
child,  seeks  to  give  utterance  to  the  prayer  of  his  heart, — 
who,  under  such  circumstances,  could  breathe  to  heaven 
his  warm  desires  through  the  cold  formalities  of  a  prayer- 
book  ?  When  praying  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Spirit  itself 
helping  our  infirmities,  and  making  intercession  for  us  with 
groanings  that  cannot  be  uttered,  must  we,  can  we  employ 
any  prescribed  form  of  words  to  express  these  unutterable 
things  ?  1  Such  a  form,  if  not  incompatible  with  such  aids 
of  the  Spirit,  and  such  promises  of  his  word,  must  at  least 
be  opposed  to  them.  So  prayed  not  our  Lord.  Such 
were  not  the  prayers  of  his  disciples.  This  proposition 
introduces  our  second  topic  of  remark. 

II.  The  use  of  forms  of  prayer  is  opposed  to  the  example 
of  Christ  and  the  apostles. 

Several  of  our  Lord's  prayers  are  left  on  record,  all  of 
which  plainly  arose  out  of  the  occasion  on  which  they 
were  offered,  and  were  strictly  extemporaiieous,  the  mere 
effusions  of  his  heart.  So  far  as  his  example  may  be  said 
to  bear  on  the  subject,  it  is  against  the  use  of  forms  of 
prayer. 

1  Comp.  Bishop  Hall,  in  Porter's  Homiletics,  p.  294. 


322 


THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 


The  prayers  of  the  apostles  were  likewise  occasional 
and  extemporaneous.  Such  was  the  prayer  of  the  disci- 
ples at  the  election  of  Matthias,  Acts  1 :  24;  of  the  church 
at  the  release  of  Peter  and  John,  4:  24 — 31;  of  Peter 
at  the  raising  to  life  of  Tabitha,  9  :  40 ;  of  the  church  for 
the  release  of  Peter  under  the  persecution  of  Herod ;  and 
of  Paul  at  his  final  interview  with  the  elders  of  Ephesus, 
20  :  36 ;  he  kneeled  down  upon  the  beach,  and  prayed 
as  the  struggling  emotions  of  his  heart  gave  him  utter- 
ance. 

It  is  particularly  worthy  of  remark,  that  in  all  the  exam- 
ples of  prayer  in  the  New  Testament,  several  of  which 
are  recorded  apparently  entire,  there  is  no  similarity  of 
form  or  expression^  nor  any  repetition  of  a  form,  with  the 
single  exception  of  the  response.  Amen,  Peace  be  with 
you,  &c.  Even  our  Lord's  prayer  is  never  repeated  on 
such  occasions,  nor  is  there,  in  all  the  New  Testament,  the 
slightest  indications  of  its  use  either  by  the  apostles,  or 
by  the  churches,  which  were  established  by  them. 

The  apostles,  then,  prayed  extemporaneously ;  and  their 
example  is  in  favor  of  this  mode  of  ofTering  unto  God  the 
desires  of  our  soul.  Paul  often  requests  the  prayers  of 
the  churches  to  whom  he  writes,  in  regard  to  particulars  so 
various,  and  so  minute,  as  to  forbid  the  supposition  that  they 
could  have  been  expressed  in  a  liturgy.  The  same  may  be 
said  in  regard  to  his  exhortations  to  prayer,  some  of  which, 
at  least,  are  generally  admitted  to  have  relation  particularly 
to  public  prayer,  1  Tim.  2 :  1,  seq.  Who,  on  reading 
these  various  exhortations,  would,  without  any  previous 
opinions  or  partialities,  ever  have  been  directed  to  the 
use  of  any  form  of  prayer  by  all  that  the  apostle  has 
written  ? 

Our  Lord's  prayer,  itself,  is  recorded  with  variations 
so  great,  as  to  forbid  the  supposition  that  it  was  designed 
to   be   used   as   a  prescribed  form ;    as  the  reader  must 


PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH.        323 

see  by  a  comparison  of  the  parallel  passages  in  the  mar- 
gin.2 

So  great  is  the  variation  in  these  two  forms,  that  many 
have  supposed  they  ought  to  be  regarded  as  two  dis- 
tinct prayers.  Such  was  the  opinion  of  Origen.  He 
notices  the  different  occasions  on  which  the  two  prayers 
were  offered,  and  concludes  that  the  resemblance  is  only 
such  as  might  be  expected  from  the  nature  of  the  subject.^ 

III.  The  use  of  forms  of  prayer  is  unauthorized  by  the 
instructions  of  Christ  and  the  apostles. 

If  any  instructions  to  this  effect  were  given  by  Christ, 
they  were  in  connection  with  the  prayer  which  he  taught 
his  disciples.  We  have,  therefore,  to  examine  somewhat 
in  detail,  the  nature  and  design  of  the  Lord's  prayer. 
The  views  of  the   learned  respecting  the  nature   of  our 


2  In  Matth.  6 :  9—13.  In  Luke  11 :  2—4. 

n'ATEP   iiiuwi^  6  ev    joTg  n'.ATEP, 

oigocvoTg'  uyiuadr^TOJ  to  ovo^ua     ujiaadriiM  id  oi'oiiia  gov 
aov.  iWiioj  Tj  ^uaiXeia  aov, 

^EWbTO)  -q  ^aailsla  aov. 
yevrjOr^Tbi  to  OaXrjuu  aov,  (hg 
hv  oi'Qai'Q,  xul  inl  z^^  ^tj^. 

Toi^  aoiov  rj^u&y  ibi^   hniov-  Tbv  olqiov  -^uibv  rov  iniOTU' 

aiov  86g  r^^li'  arifxeQOV.  aiov  didov  r^filv  to  xud  fifjsQav, 

Kal  acpeg  rifiii'  ru  6q>eiXr^uaTa  Kal  dq)6g  r^fup  x^g  (x/JUi^jiag 

flfiCov,   (hg   xui    ri((ng   icq:iefisp     -f^^ibp'    xul  yuQ  aiiol  dcplefiEV 
rolg  dcpeilsTaig  r^imt'.  navil  ocpelXovrt,  r^ulv- 

Kut  ur\  Eiaevkyy.ri;  r^iiug  elg  xal  fjij  elaevsyHrig   r^/uag  Big 

neiquot.i6v,   alku   {jvaui    r^uug     neioua/jov. 
&nb  TOv  noP7]oov. 

The  doxology  is  generally  supposed  to  be  spurious ;  but  without  noticing 
the  omission  of  this  in  Luke,  the  prayers  are  as  various  as  they  might  be 
expected  to  be,  if  delivered  extemporaneously  on  two  different  occasions, 
without  any  intention  of  offering  either  as  a  prescribed  form  of  prayer. 

^  Belilof  r^  diucpoQOvg  voui'ZeaOut,  lug  nfjoaev/ug  xoipu  xiva 
iXOvai]g  ftegi].      Tle^l  ev/fi; — Vol.  I,  p.  227. 


324  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Lord's  prayer,  and  the  ends   designed  by  it,  are  arranged 
by  Augusti  under  three  several  classes. 

1.  Those  who  maintain  that  Christ  offered  no  pre- 
scribed form  of  prayer,  neither  for  his  immediate  disciples, 
nor  for  believers  in  any  age  ;  but  that  he  gave  this  as  an 
example  of  the  filial  and  reverential  spirit  in  which  we 
should  offer  our  prayers  to  God,  and  of  the  simplicity 
and  brevity  which  ought  to  characterize  our  supplications, 
in  opposition  to  the  vain  repetitions  of  the  heathen,  and 
the  ostentatious  formalities  of  the  Pharisees.  It  is  worthy 
of  remark,  that  this  was  originally  given  immediately  after 
rebuking  such  hypocritical  devotions.  Augustine,  A.  D. 
400,  expressly  declares,  that  Christ  did  not  teach  his  dis- 
ples  what  words  they  should  use  in  prayer  ;  but  what 
things  they  should  pray  for,  when  engaged  in  silent, 
mental  prayer.^ 

2.  Those  who  contend  that  it  is  a  specific  and  invari- 
able form,  to  be  used  by  Christians  in  all  ages,  like  the  bap- 
tismal formula  in  Math.  28 :  19,  20 ;  though  not  to  the 
exclusion  of  other  forms  of  prayer. 

3.  Others  incline  to  the  opinion,  that  the  prayer  is  an 
epitome  of  the  Jewish  forms  of  prayer  which  were  then 
in  use  ;  and  that  it  comprised,  in  its  several  parts,  the 
very  words  with  which  their  prayers  began,  and  which 
were  embodied  in  one,  as  a  substitute  for  so  many  long  and 
unmeaning  forms  of  prayer. 

Whatever  be  the  true  view  of  this  subject,  it  is  remark- 
able that  our  Lord's  prayer  was  not  in  use  in  the  age  of 
the  apostles.  Not  the  remotest  allusion  to  it  occurs  in  the 
history  of  the  acts  of  the  apostles,  nor  in  their  epistles.  It 
is  true,  indeed,  that  the  canon  of  the  New  Testament  was 
not  then  established,  nor  their  WTitings  extensively  known ; 

4  Non  enim  verba,  sed  res  ipsas  eos  verbis  docuit,  quibus  et  se  ipsi  a 
quo,  et  quid  esset  orandum  cum  in  penetralibus,  ut  dictum,  mentis  orarent. 
-De  Magistro,  c.  2,  Vol.  I,  p.  402. 


PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH.        325 

but  we  must  suppose  that  tradition  would,  at  least  in  some 
degree,  have  supplied  the  place  of  the  gospels.  The 
supposition,  that,  in  all  cases  of  prayer  by  the  disciples 
and  early  Christians,  the  use  of  this  form  must  be  pre- 
sumed, like  that  of  the  baptismal  formula,  is  altogether 
gratuitous  and  groundless. 

In  the  earliest  apostolical  fathers,  also,  no  trace  is  found 
of  this  prayer.  Neither  Clement,  nor  Polycarp,  nor  any 
father,  makes  allusion  to  it,  antecedent  to  Justin  Martyr, 
A.  D.  14S.  And  he  informs  us  that  in  Christian  assem- 
blies, the  presiding  minister  offered  up  prayer  and  thanks- 
giving, as  he  was  able,  oai]  dyvafxig  dura;,  and  that  hereupon 
the  people  answered  Amen !  This  expression,  as  we  shall 
endeavor  to  show  in  another  place,  means, —  as  ivell  as  he 
could,  or  to  the  best  of  his  ability.  It  shows  that  public- 
prayers  were  not  confined  to  any  pre-composed  forms. 
The  Lord's  prayer  may  have  been  used  in  connection 
with  these  extemporary  addresses  of  the  minister;  but 
there  is  no  evidence  of  such  an  usage.  In  describing  the 
ceremony  of  baptism,  Justin  speaks  of  the  use  which  is 
made  of  "  the  name  of  the  universal  father,"  to  toD  IJajgog 
T^v  oXCov,  which  is  supposed  by  some  to  be  an  allusion  to 
the  expression,  "  our  Father  who  art  in  heaven." 

Lucian,  A.  D.  180,  in  his  Philopatris,  speaks  of  the 
prayer  which  begins  with  the  Father,  Ivx^i  dnd  UuTgdg- 
&Q^&^evog,  which  may  possibly  be  a  similar  allusion  to  our 
Lord's  prayer. 

Nothing  much  more  explicit  occurs  in  Irenaeus.  He 
says,  however,  "  Christ  has  taught  us  to  say  in  prayer^ 
*  And  forgive  us  our  debts; '  for  he  is  our  Father,  whose 
debtors  we  are,  having  transgressed  his  precepts.'^ ^  This 
passage  only  shows  his  acquaintance  with  the  prayer, 
but  proves  nothing  in  relation  to  the  liturgical  use  of  it. 
The   same  may  be  said  of  Clement  of  Alexandria,  who 

6  Adv.  Haeres.,  Lib.  5,  c.  17. 

28 


326  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

makes  evident  allusion  to  the  Lord's  prayer  in  several 
passages.^ 

The  Apostolical  Constitutions  belong  to  a  later  age,  and 
cannot,  therefore,  be  introduced  as  evidence  in  the  ques- 
tion under  consideration. 

Tertullian,  at  the  close  of  the  second  century  and  be- 
ginning of  the  third,  together  with  Origen,  and  Cyprian, 
who  lived  a  few  years  later,  give  more  authentic  notice  of 
the  Lord's  prayer. 

Tertullian  not  only  quotes  the  Lord's  prayer  in  various 
parts  of  his  writings,  but  he  has  left  a  treatise  "  On  Prayer," 
which  consist  of  an  exposition  of  it,  with  some  remarks 
appended,  concerning  the  customs  observed  in  prayer. 
In  this  treatise,  which  he  is  supposed  to  have  written,  be- 
fore he  went  over  to  Montanism,  i.  e.,  before  the  year 
200,  Tertullian  represents  this  prayer,  not  merely  as  ati 
exemplar,  or  pattern  of  Christian  petitions,  but  as  the 
quintescence  and  ground  of  all  prayer ;  and  as  a  summary 
of  the  gospel.'''  He  strongly  recommends,  however,  other 
prayers,  and  enumerates  the  several  parts  of  prayer,  such  as 
supplication,  entreaty,  confession  of  sin,  and  then  proceeds 
to  show  that  we  may  offer  other  petitions,  according  to  our 
accidental  circumstances  and  desires,  having  premised  this 
legitimate  and  ordinary  prayer  which  is  the  foundation 
of  all.s 

Cyprian,  who  died  A.  D.  258,  repeats  the  sentiments  of 
Tertullian,  whom  he  recognizes,  to  a  great  extent,  as  his 
guide  in  all  points  of  doctrine.  He  wrote  a  treatise  on 
the  Lord's  prayer,  on  nearly  the  same  plan  as  that  of  Ter- 
tullian.    He  has  less  spirit,  but  is  more  full  than  his  pre- 

6  Especially  Paedag.,  Lib.  3.  7  De  Oratione,  c.  1,  pp.  129,  130. 

8  Quoniam  tamen  Dominus  prospector  humanarum  necessitatum 
seorsum  post  traditam  orandi  disciplinam,  "petite,"  inquit  ^'etaccipietisj" 
et  sunt,  quae  petantur  pro  circumstantia  cujusque,  praemissa  legitima  et 
ordinaria  oratione,  quasi  fundamento ;  accidentiiim  jus  est  desideriorum 
jus  est  superstruendi  cxtrinsecus  pelitiones. — De  Oral.,  c.  9. 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  327 

decessor;  and  often  explains  his  obscurities.  Cyprian 
says,  that  our  Lord,  among  other  important  precepts  and 
instructions,  gave  us  a  form  of  prayer,  and  taught  us  for 
what  we  should  pray.  He  also  styles  the  prayer,  our  pub- 
lic and  common  prayer; 9  and  urges  the  use  of  it  by  con- 
siderations drawn  from  the  nature  of  prayer,  without 
asserting  its  liturgical  authority  or  established  use. 

Origen,  contemporary  wath  Cyprian,  has  a  treatise  on 
prayer,  in  the  latter  part  of  which,  he  comments  at  length 
upon  the  Lord's  prayer.  His  remarks  are  extremely  dis- 
cursive, and  chiefly  of  a  moral  and  practical  character; 
so  that  we  derive  no  satisfactory  information  from  him 
respecting  the  liturgical  use  of  this  prayer,  or  prayers 
rather,  as  he  regards  them.  He,  however,  warns  his 
readers  against  vain  repetitions  and  improper  requests^ 
charging  them  not  to  battologize  in  their  prayers;  —  an 
error  which  they  could  have  been  in  no  danger  of  com- 
mitting, had  they  been  guided  by  the  dictation  of  a  prayer- 
book.  The  explanation  which  he  gives  implies  the  use  of 
extempore  prayer.i^ 

It  appears  from  the  foregoing  authorities,,  that  our  Lord's 
prayer  was  neither  in  use  by  the  apostles  themselves,  nor 
by  the  churches  founded  by  them,  nor  by  the  primitive 
churches,  until  the  close  of  the  second  century  and  begin- 
ning of  the  third.  From  this  time  it  began  to  be  used, 
and  in  the  fifth  and  sixth  centuries  was  a  part  of  the 
public  liturgies  of  the  churches. 

With  reference  to  the  Lord's  prayer  we  subjoin  the 
following  remarks. 

1.  It  is  questionable  whether  the  loords  of  this  prayer 
ivere  indited  by  our  Lord  himself.     If  we  adopt  the  theory 

8  Inter  cetera  sua  salutaria  monita  et  praecepta  divina,  .  .  .  etiam 
orandi  ipse  formam  dedit^  .  .  .  publica  est  nobis  et  communis  oratio. — 
De  Oratione,  pp.  204—206. 

10  De  OrationC;  c.  21,  p.  230. 


328  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

of  many  that  it  is  a  compend  of  the  customary  prayers  in 
the  religious  service  of  the  Jews,  how  can  it  with  propriety 
be  affirmed  that  our  Lord  gave  to  his  disciples  any  form  of 
prayer  whatever  as  his  own? 

2.  This  appears  not  to  have  been  given  to  the  disciples 
05  a  form  of  public  pra^jer ;  but  as  a  specimen  of  that 
spirituality  and  simplicity,  which  should  appear  in  their 
devotions,  in  opposition  to  the  "  vain  repetitions  of  the 
heathen,"  and  the  heartless  formalities  of  the  Pharisees. 
It  merely  enforces  a  holy  importunity,  sincerity  and  sim- 
plicity in  private  prayer.  It  was  a  prayer  to  be  offered  in 
secret,  as  the  context  in  both  instances  indicates.  Matt.  6  : 
3—14.     Luke  11:   1—13. 

3.  Our  Lord  expressly  enjoined  upon  his  disciples  to 
offer  other  petitions,  of  the  highest  importance,  for  which 
no  form  is  given.  The  gifts  of  the  Holy  Spirit  are  offered 
to  those  who  shall  ask,  while  yet  no  prescribed  formula  is 
given,  in  which  to  make  known  our  requests  for  this  bless- 
ing. Why  have  we  not,  therefore,  the  same  authority, 
even  from  Christ  himself,  for  extemporaneous  prayer,  as 
for  a  litany  ?  At  least  we  must  presume  that  our  Lord 
had  no  intention  to  prescribe  an  exact  model  of  prayer, 
while  teaching  us  to  pray,  without  any  form,  for  the  highest 
blessing  which  we  can  receive. 

4.  A  strict  adherence  to  this  form  is  incompatible  with 
a  suitable  recognition  of  Christ  as  our  mediator  and  in- 
tercessor with  the  Father.  "  Hitherto,"  said  our  Lord  in 
his  last  interview  with  his  disciples  before  he  suffered, 
"ye  have  asked  nothing  in  my  name^  But  a  new  and 
peculiar  dispensation  was  opening  to  them,  by  which  they 
might  have  "  boldness  to  enter  into  the  holiest  by  the  blood 
of  Jesus."  The  petitions  of  that  prayer  might,  indeed, 
be  suitable  to  the  Christian  in  every  age,  and  in  all  stages 
of  his  spiritual  progress ;  but  they  are  appropriate  rather, 
to  those  under  the  law,  than  to  those  under  grace.     They 


PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH.        329 

breathe  not  the  peculiar  spirit  of  him  who  would  plead  the 
name  of  Christ  alone,  in  suing  for  pardon  and  acceptance 
with  God. 

5.  This  prayer  belongs  rather  to  the  economy  of  the 
Old  Testament.  Christ  was  not  yet  glorified.  The  Spirit 
was  not  given;  neither  was  the  law  of  ordinances  abolished. 
However  useful  or  important  it  may  have  been,  in  the 
worship  of  God  under  the  Old  Testament,  is  it  of  necessity 
imposed  upon  us  under  that  better  covenant  which  God 
has  given ;  and  by  which  he  gives  us  nearness  of  access 
to  his  throne,  without  any  of  the  formalities  of  that  ancient 
Jewish  ritual;  and  only  requires  us  to  worship  him  in 
spirit  and  in  truth  ? 

6.  The  variations  of  phraseology  in  the  forms  given  by 
the  evangelists,  are  so  great  as  to  forbid  the  supposition 
that  it  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  specific  and  prescribed  form 
of  prayer.  The  reader  has  only  to  notice  the  two  forms 
of  Matthew  and  Luke,  to  see  that  the  variations  are  too 
numerous  and  important  to  justify  an  adherence  to  one 
invariable  form  of  speech.  The  only  form  of  prayer  that 
can  be  a  found  in  the  Scriptures,  is  recorded  on  two  occasions, 
with  such  variations  as  to  exclude  the  possibility  of  de- 
riving from  either  any  authorized  and  unchangeable  form 
of  prayer.  Both  have  the  same  general  resemblance, 
united  with  circumstantial  variations,  which  might  be  ex- 
pected of  one  who  was  careful  only  to  utter  the  same 
sentiinents,  without  any  studied  phraseology  or  set  form  of 
words.  They  are  as  various  as  two  extemporaneous 
prayers  might  be  expected  to  be,  if  uttered  upon  two 
similar  occasions  with  reference  to  the  same  subject.^i 

IV.  The  use  of  forms  of  prayer  is  contrary  to  the 
simplicity  and  freedom  of  primitive  worship. 

11  On  this  whole  subject,  comp.  Augusti,  Denkwtirdigkeiten;  Vol.  V, 
pp.  88—134. 

28^ 


330  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

All  the  early  records  of  antiquity  relating  to  the  ecclesi- 
astical polity  of  the  primitive  Christians,  and  to  their  rites 
of  religious  worship,  concur  in  the  representation,  that  they 
were  conducted  with  the  utmost  simplicity ;  and  in  total 
contrast,  both  with  the  formalities  of  the  ancient  Mosaic 
ritual,  and  the  various  forms  of  Episcopal  worship  and 
government,  which  were  subsequently  introduced. i-  The 
men  of  those  days  all  accounted  themselves  the  priests  of 
God;  and  each,  according  to  his  ability,  claimed  the  liberty, 
not  only  to  teach  and  to  exhort,  but  even  to  administer  the 
ordinances.  All  this  is  explicitly  asserted  in  the  commen- 
tary upon  Eph.  4:  11,  which  is  ascribed  to  Hilary  of 
Rome,  about  A.  D.  360.  "After  churches  were  every 
where  established,  and  ecclesiastical  orders  settled,  the 
policy  pursued  was  different  from  that  which,  at  first,  pre- 
vailed. For,  at  first,  all  were  accustomed  to  teach,  and  to 
baptize,  each  on  every  day  alike,  as  he  had  occasion, 
Philip  sought  no  particular  day  or  occasion  in  which  to 
baptize  the  eunuch,  neither  did  he  interpose  any  season  of 
fasting.  Neither  did  Paul  and  Silas  delay  the  baptism  of 
the  jailer  and  all  his  house.  Peter  had  the  assistance  of 
no  deacons,  nor  did  he  seek  for  any  particular  day,  in 
which  to  baptize  Cornelius  and  his  household.  He  did 
not  even  administer  the  baptism  himself,  but  entrusted  this 
duty  to  the  brethren,  who  had  come  with  him  from  Joppa ; 
as  yet  there  were  no  deacons,  save  the  seven  who  had  been 
appointed.  That  the  disciples  might  increase  and  multi- 
ply, all,  in  the  beginning,  were  permitted  to  preach,  to 
baptize,  and  to  expound  the  Scriptures.  But  when  Chris- 
tianity became  widely  extended,  small  assemblies  were 
formed,  and  rectors  and  presidents  were  appointed;  and 
other  offices,  instituted  in  the  church.  No  one  of  the 
clergy  presumed,  without  ordination,  to  assume  his  office. 
The  writings  of  the  apostles  do  not,  in  all  respects,  accord 

12  Comp.  Schoenc;  Geschichtsforschungen;  Vol.  I,  pp.  91 — 132. 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  331 

with  the  existing  state  of  things  in  the  church;  because 
these  things  were  written  at  the  time  of  the  first  organiza- 
tion of  the  church.^^^^ 

This  passage  asserts  the  free  and  unrestrained  liberty 
which  all,  at  first,  enjoyed,  in  instructing  and  exhorting; 
and  in  administering  the  ordinances  and  the  government 
of  the  church. 

There  is  a  passage  in  TertuUian,  also,  indicative  of  the 
same  absence  of  prescribed  form  and  regularity.  "  After 
the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  psalms  are  sung,  or  addresses 
are  made,  or  prayers  are  offered."  i^  All  is  unsettled.  The 
exercises  are  freely  varied,  according  to  circumstances. 
This  absence  of  all  established  forms,  and  the  universal 
enjoyment  of  religious  liberty  and  equality,  was,  indeed, 
sometimes  misunderstood  and  abused,  as  we  have  seen, 
even  by  the  churches  to  whom  the  apostle  writes ;  and  yet 
it  was  far  from  offering  any  encouragement  to  the  disorders 
and  extravagances  of  fanaticism.  Observe,  for  example, 
the  following  upbraidings  of  such  irregularities  by  Tertul- 
lian:  "I  must  not  fail  to  describe,  in  this  place,  the  religious 
deportment  of  these  heretics ;  how  unseemly,  how  earthly, 
how  carnal;  without  gravity,  without  respect,  without 
discipline; — ^how  inconsistent  with  their  religious  belief. 
Especially,  it  is  wholly  uncertain  who  may  be  a  catechu- 
men ;  who,  a  Christian  professor.  They  all  assemble  and 
sit  promiscuously  as  hearers ;  and  pray  indiscriminately. 
How  impudent  are  the  women  of  these  heretics,  who  pre- 
sume to  teach,  to  dispute,  to  exorcise,  to  practise  magic  arts 
upon  the  sick ;  and,  perhaps,  even  to  baptize.  Their  elec- 
tions to  offices  in  the  church  are  hasty,  inconsiderate,  and 
irregular.  At  one  time  they  elect  neophytes ;  at  another, 
men  of  the  world ;   and  then  apostates  from  us,  that  they 

13  Comment,  ad  Eph.  4:11.     Ambros.  Opera,  Vol.  III. 

14  Jam  vero  prout  Scripturae  leguntur,  aut  psalmi  canuntur,  aut  adlocu- 
tiones  pvoferuntur,  aut  petitionis  delegantur. — De  Anima,  c.  9. 


332  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

may,  at  least,  gain  such  by  honor,  if  not  by  the  truth. 
No  where  is  promotion  easier  than  in  the  camps  of  rebels, 
where  one's  presence  is  a  sure  passport  to  preferment. 
Accordingly,  one  is  bishop  to-day;  to-morrow,  another;  to- 
day, a  deacon;  to-morrow,  a  reader;  and  he,  who  is  now  a 
presbyter,  to-morrow  will  be  again  a  layman."!^ 

In  relation  to  this  passage,  which  Neander  quotes  at 
length,  he  offers  the  follo\ving  remarks,  and  we  commend 
them  to  the  attentive  consideration  of  the  reader.  "We 
here  see  the  operations  of  two  conflicting  parties,  one  of 
whom  regards  the  original  organization  of  the  apostolical 
churches  as  a  divine  institution,  and  an  abiding  ordinance 
in  the  church,  essential  to  the  spread  of  a  pure  Christianity. 
The  other,  who  contend  for  an  unrestrained  freedom  in  all 
external  matters,  oppose  these  views,  as  foreign  to  the 
freedom  and  simplicity  which  the  spirit  of  the  gospel 
encourages.  They  deny  that  the  kingdom  of  God,  itself 
inward,  unseen,  can  need  any  outward  organization  for  the 
support  and  spread  of  that  kingdom.  They  contend  that 
all  Christians  belong  to  the  priesthood;  and  this  they  would 
practically  exemplify,  by  allowing  no  established  distinction 
between  the  clergy  and  the  laity;  but  permitting  all,  in 
common,  to  teach,  and  to  administer  the  sacraments ;  two 
parties,  which  we  often  see  opposed  to  each  other,  in  the 
subsequent  history  of  the  church.  One  of  them  lays  great 
stress  upon  the  outward  organization  of  the  visible  church, 
by  not  suitably  distinguishing  between  what  may  be  a 
divine  institution  and  what  a  human  ordinance ;  the 
other,  holds  the  doctrine  of  an  invisible  kingdom,  but 
overlooking  the  necessities  of  weak  minds,  which  are  inca- 
pable of  forming  conceptions  of  objects  so  spiritual,  rejects 
with  abhorrence  all  such  ordinances."  i^ 


15  De  Praescriptionibus  Haeret.,  c.  41. 

16  Antagonisticus,  pp.  340,  341.    1825. 


PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH.        333 

V.  The  use  of  forms  of  prayer  was  unknown  in  the 
primitive  church. 

The  apostolical  fathers,  Clement  and  Polycarp,  give  us  no 
information  concerning  their  modes  of  worship  in  the  age 
immediately  succeeding  that  of  the  apostles.  The  circum- 
stances of  their  meeting  in  secresy,  and  under  cover  of  the 
latest  hours  of  the  night,  together  with  other  inconvenien- 
ces, must,  it  would  seem,  he  very  unfavorable  to  the  use  of 
a  liturgy,  or  any  form  of  prayer.  Tertullian  and  Eusebius 
represent  the  primitive  Christians,  of  whom  Pliny  speaks, 
to  have  come  together,  ad  canendum  Christie  to  si7ig  praise 
to  Christ,  and  this  is,  perhaps,  the  most  natural  interpreta- 
tion of  the  text. 

We  are  left,  then,  to  the  conclusion,  that  the  apostolical 
churches  neither  used  any  forms  of  prayer,  nor  is  such  use 
authorized  by  divine  authority.  In  this  conclusion,  we  are 
sustained  by  various  considerations,  drawn  from  the  fore- 
going views  of  the  simplicity  of  primitive  worship. 

1.  The  supposition  of  a  form  of  prayer  is  opposed  to 
that  simplicity,  freedom  of  speech,  and  absence  of  all  for- 
malities, which  characterized  the  worship  of  these  early 
Christians. 

In  nothing,  perhaps,  was  the  worship  of  the  Christian 
religion  more  strikingly  opposed  to  that  of  the  Jewish,  than 
in  these  particulars.  The  one  was  encumbered  with  a 
burdensome  ritual,  and  celebrated,  with  many  imposing 
formalities,  by  a  priesthood  divinely  constituted,  whose  rank, 
and  grades  of  office,  and  duties,  were  defined  with  great  mi- 
nuteness, and  observed  with  cautious  precision.  The  other 
prescribed  no  ritual,  designated  no  unchanging  order  of  the 
priesthood ;  but,  simply  directing  that  all  things  should  be 
done  decently  and  in  order,  permitted  all  to  join  in  the 
worship  of  God,  with  unrestrained  freedom,  simplicity,  and 
singleness  of  heart.  The  one,  requires  the  worshipper  to 
come   with  awful   reverence;    and,  standing  afar  off,  to 


334  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

present  his  offering  to  the  appointed  priest,  who,  alone,  is 
permitted  to  bring  it  near  to  God.  The  other,  invites  the 
humble  worshipper  to  draw  near,  in  the  full  assurance  of 
faith ;  and,  leaning  on  the  bosom  of  the  Father  with  the 
confiding  spirit  of  a  little  child,  to  utter  his  whole  heart 
in  the  ears  of  parental  love  and  tenderness.  Is  it  not  con- 
trary, then,  to  the  economy  of  this  gracious  dispensation,  to 
trammel  up  the  spirit  of  this  little  child  with  a  studied  form 
of  speech ;  to  chill  the  fervor  of  his  soul  by  the  cold  dicta- 
tions of  another ;  and  require  him  to  give  utterance  to  the 
struggling  emotions  of  his  heart,  in  language,  to  him, 
uncongenial?  Does  it  comport  with  the  genius  of  primitive 
Christianity,  to  lay  upon  the  suppliant,  in  audience  with 
his  Father  in  heaven,  the  restraints  of  courtly  formalities 
and  studied  proprieties  of  premeditated  prayer  ?  The  art- 
lessness  and  simplicity  of  primitive  worship  offer  a  strong 
presumption  in  favor  of  free,  extemporaneous  prayer. 

2.  This  presumption  is  strengthened  by  the  example  of 
Christ  and  his  apostles,  all  of  whose  prayers,  so  far  as  they 
are  recorded,  or  the  circumstances  related  under  which 
they  were  offered,  are  strictly  extemporaneous. 

This  argument  has  been  already  duly  considered,  and 
may  be  dismissed  without  further  expansion  in  this  place. 

3.  We  conclude  that  no  forms  of  prayer  were  author- 
ized or  required  in  the  apostolical  churches,  because  no 
instructions  to  this  effect  are  given  either  by  Christ  or  the 
apostles. 

The  Lord's  prayer,  as  we  have  already  seen,  was  not  a 
prescribed  form  of  prayer,  neither  was  it  in  use  in  the 
apostolical  churches ;  nor  are  any  intimations  given  in  the 
New  Testament  of  any  form  of  prayer,  prayer-book,  or 
ritual  of  any  kind,  unless  the  response,  to  which  allusion  is 
made  in  1  Cor.  14:  16,  be  considered  as  such.  Here,  then, 
is  a  clear  omission,  and  manifestly  designed  to  show  that 
God  did  not  purpose  to  give  any  instructions  respecting  the 


PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH.        335 

manner  in  which  we  are  to  offer  to  him  our  prayers.  This 
argument  from  the  omissioiis  of  Scripture  is  presented  with 
great  force  by  Archbishop  Whately,  in  support  of  the  opinion 
which  we  here  offer,  and  we  shall  accordingly  adopt  his 
language  to  express  it. 

After  asserting  that  the  sacred  writers  were  supernatu- 
rally  withheld  from  recording  some  things,  he  adds  :  "  On 
no  supposition,  whatever,  can  we  account  for  the  omission, 
by  all  of  them,  of  many  points  which  they  do  omit,  and  of 
their  scanty  and  slight  mention  of  others,  except, by  con- 
sidering them  as  withheld  by  the  express  design  and  will 
(whether  communicated  to  each  of  them  or  not)  of  their 
heavenly  Master,  restraining  them  from  committing  to 
writing  many  things  which,  naturally,  some  or  other  of 
them,  at  least,  would  not  have  failed  so  to  record. 

•  "  We  seek  in  vain  there  for  many  things  which,  humanly 
speaking,  we  should  have  most  surely  calculated  on  finding. 
'  No  such  thing  is  to  be  found  in  our  Scriptures  as  a  Cate- 
chism, or  regular  elementary  introduction  to  the  Christian 
religion ;  neither  do  they  furnish  us  with  any  thing  of  the 
nature  of  a  systematic  creed,  set  of  articles,  confession  of 
faith,  or  by  whatever  other  name  one  may  designate  a 
regular,  complete  compendium  of  Christian  doctrines :  nor, 
again,  do  they  supply  us  with  a  liturgy  for  ordinary  public 
worship,  or  ivith  forms  for  administering  the  sacraments, 
or  for  conferring  holy  orders ;  nor  do  they  even  give  any 
precise  directions  as  to  these  and  other  ecclesiastical  mat- 
ters \ — any  thing  that  at  all  corresponds  to  a  rubric,  or  set 
of  canons.' 

"  Now  these  omissions  present  a  complete  moral  demon- 
stration that  the  apostles  and  their  followers  must  have 
been  super  naturally  withheld  from  recording  great  part  of 
the  institutions,  instructions,  and  regulations,  which  must, 
in  point  of  fact,  have  proceeded  from  them ; — withheld,  on 
purpose  that  other  churches,  in  other  ages  and  regions, 


336  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

might  not  be  led  to  consider  themselves  bound  to  adhere  to 
several  formularies,  customs,  and  rules,  that  were  of  local 
and  temporary  appointment;  but  might  be  left  to  their  own 
discretion  in  matters  in  which  it  seemed  best  to  divine  wis- 
dom that  they  should  be  so  left."  ^'^ 

4.  No  form  of  prayer,  liturgy,  or  ritual,  was  recorded  or 
preserved  by  the  contemporaries,  inspired  or  uninspired,  of 
the  apostles,  or  by  their  immediate  successors. 

This  consideration  is  nearly  allied  to  the  former,  and  is 
so  forcibly  urged  by  Archbishop  Whately,  that  we  shall 
again  present  the  argument  in  his  own  words.  "  It  was, 
indeed,  not  at  all  to  be  expected  that  the  Gospels,  the  Acts, 
and  those  Epistles  which  have  come  down  to  us,  should 
have  been,  considering  the  circumstances  in  which  they 
were  written,  any  thing  different  from  what  they  are  :  but 
the  question  still  recurs,  why  should  not  the  apostles  or 
their  followers  have  also  committed  to  paper,  what,  we  are 
sure,  must  have  been  perpetually  in  their  mouths,  regular 
instructions  to  catechumens,  articles  of  faith,  prayers,  and 
directions  as  to  public  worship,  and  administration  of  the 
sacraments  ?  Why  did  none  of  them  record  any  of  the 
prayers,  of  which  they  must  have  heard  so  many  from  an 
apostle's  mouth,  both  in  the  ordinary  devotional  assemblies, 
in  the  administration  of  the  sacraments,  and  in  the  '  laying 
on  of  hands,'  by  which  they  themselves  had  been  or- 
dained?" is 

The  superstitious  reverence  of  the  early  Christians  for 
such  productions  as  might  have  been  obtained  from  the 
apostles  and  their  contemporaries,  is  apparent  from  the 
numerous  forgeries  of  epistles,  liturgies,  &c.,  which  were 
published  under  their  name.  Had  any  genuine  liturgies  of 
the  apostolical  churches  been  written,  it  is  inconceivable,  that 
they  should  all  have  been  lost,  and  these  miserable  forge- 
ries, such  as  those  of  James,  Peter,  Andrew,  and  Mark, 

"  Kingdom  of  Christ,  pp.  82,  83.  is  Ibid.,  pp.  252,  253. 


THE  PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH.     337 

substituted  in  their  place.  Some  discovery  must  have  been 
made  of  these,  among  other  religious  books  and  sacred 
things  of  the  Christians,  which,  in  times  of  persecution, 
were  diligently  sought  out  and  burned.  Strict  inquiry 
was  made  after  these,  and  their  sacred  books,  and  sacra- 
mental utensils ;  their  cups,  lamps,  torches,  vestments,  and 
other  property  of  the  church,  were  often  delivered  up,  and 
burnt  or  destroyed.  But  there  is  no  instance  on  record,  of 
any  form  of  prayer,  liturgy,  or  book  of  divine  service  having 
been  discovered,  in  the  early  persecutions  of  the  church. 
This  fact  is  so  extraordinary,  that  Bingham,  who  earnestly 
contends  for  the  use  of  liturgies  from  the  beginning,  is 
constrained  to  admit,  that  they  could  not  have  been  com- 
mitted to  writing  in  the  early  periods  of  the  church,  but 
must  have  been  preserved  by  oral  tradition,  and  used  ^^by 
Tnemory^  and  made  familiar  by  known  and  constant  prac- 
tice." 1^  The  reader  has  his  alternative,  between  this  sup- 
position, and  that  of  no  liturgy  or  prescribed  form  of  prayer 
in  those  days  of  primitive  simplicity.  Constantine  took 
special  care  to  have  fifty  copies  of  the  Bible  prepared  for 
the  use  of  the  churches,  and,  by  a  royal  commission,  en- 
trusted Eusebius,  the  historian,  with  the  duty  of  procuring 
them. 20  How  is  it,  that  the  service-book  was  entirely  for- 
gotten in  this  provision  for  the  worship  of  God  ?  Plainly 
because  they  used  none  for  this  purpose. 

5.  The  earliest  fathers,  in  defending  the  usages  of  the 
church,  and  deciding  controversies,  make  no  appeal  to 
liturgies,  but  only  to  tradition.  "  For  these,  and  other 
rites  of  a  like  character,"  says  Tertullian,-in  speaking  of 
the  ceremonies  of  baptism  and  of  the  Lord's  supper,  "  for 
these,  if  you  seek  the  authority  of  Scripture,  you  will  find 
none.     Tradition  is  your  authority,  confirmed  by  custom 

19  Antiq.,  Book  13,  c.  5.  20  Euseb.,  Vit.  Constant.,  Lib.  4,  36. 

29 


338  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

and  faithfully  observed." 21  But  these  should  have  a  place 
in  a  liturgy.  Cyprian  advocates  the  mingling  of  water 
with  wine,  at  the  Lord's  supper,  by  an  appeal  to  tradition, 
without  any  reference  to  the  liturgy  of  James.2'2 

Firmilian,  his  contemporary,  admits,  that  the  church  at 
Rome  did  not  strictly  observe  all  things  which  may  have 
been  delivered  at  the  beginning,  "  so  that  it  was  vain  even 
to  allege  the  authority  of  the  apostles."  ^3 

Basil  is  even  more  explicit.  After  mentioning  several 
things  which  are  practised  in  the  church  without  scriptural 
authority,  such  as  the  sign  of  the  cross,  praying  towards 
the  east,  and  the  form  of  invocation  in  the  consecration  of 
the  elements,  he  proceeds  to  say,  "  We  do  not  content  our- 
selves with  what  the  apostle  or  the  gospel  may  have  care- 
fully recorded;  with  these  we  are  not  satisfied;  but  we 
have  much  to  say  before  and  after  the  ordinance,  derived 
from  instructions  which  have  never  been  written^  as  having 
great  efficacy  in  these  mysteries."  Among  these  unwritten 
and  unauthorized  rites,  he  enumerates  afterwards  the  con- 
secration of  the  baptismal  water.  "  From  what  writings, 
hnh  nbitav  iyyq6L(fb)v,"  he  asks,  "  comes  this  formulary  ? 
They  have  none;  nothing  but  silent  and  secret  tradition. "^4 

From  the  fact,  that  the  appeal  is  only  to  tradition,  we 
conclude,  with  Du  Pin  and  others,  that  the  apostles  neither 
authorized,  nor  left  behind  them  any  prescribed  form  of 
worship  or  liturgy. 

6.  That  simplicity  in  worship,  which  continued  for  some 
time  subsequent  to  the  age  of  the  apostles,  forbids  the  sup- 
position of  the  use  of  liturgical  forms. 

21  Harum  et  aliarum  hujusmodi  disciplinarum  sUegem,  expostules  scrip- 
turarum,  nullam  invenies.  Traditio  tibi  praetenditur  autrix,  consuetude 
confirmatrix,  fides  observatrix. — De  Corona  Mil.,  c.  4. 

22  Ep.  ad  Caecil,  p.  104.       23  Ep.  ad  Cyprian,  inter  Ep.  Cyp.,  75,  p.  144. 
24  De  Spiritu  Sancto,  c.  27. 


PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH.        339 

We  return  now  lo  the  second  and  third  centuries,  and, 
from  the  testimonies,  particularly  of  Justin  Martyr  and 
Tertullian,  we  learn,  that  the  worship  of  the  Christian 
church,  at  this  period,  continued  to  be  conducted  in  primi- 
tive simplicity,  without  agenda,  liturgy,  or  forms  of  prayer. 

Justin  Martyr,  in  his  Apology  in  behalf  of  the  Christian 
religion,  which  he  presented  to  the  Roman  emperor, 
Antoninus  Pius,  about  A.  D.  138,  or  139,25  ^ives  a  de- 
tailed account  of  the  prevailing  mode  of  celebrating  the 
ordinances  of  baptism  and  the  Lord's  supper  in  the  Chris- 
tian church,  in  which  he  repeatedly  mentions  the  prayers 
which  are  offered  in  these  solemnities.  "  After  baptizing 
the  believer,  and  making  him  one  with  us,  we  conduct  him 
to  the  brethren,  as  they  are  called,  where  they  are  assem- 
bled, fervently  to  offer  their  common  supplications  for 
themselves,  for  him  who  has  been  illuminated,  and  for  all 
men  every  where ;  that  we  may  live  worthy  of  the  truth 
which  we  have  learned,  and  be  found  to  have  kept  the 
commandments,  so  that  we  may  be  saved  with  an  ever- 
lasting salvation.  After  prayer,  we  salute  one  another 
with  a  kiss.  After  this,  bread,  and  a  cup  of  wine  and 
water  are  brought  to  the  president,  which  he  takes,  and 
offers  up  praise  and  glory  to  the  Father  of  all  things, 
through  the  name  of  the  Son  arid  of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  and 
gives  thanks  that  we  are  accounted  worthy  of  these  things. 
When  he  has  ended  the  prayers  and  the  thanksgiving,  all 
the  people  present  respond,  amen!  which,  in  Hebrew,  signi- 
fies, so  may  it  be^ 

The  description  above  relates  to  the  celebration  of  the 
Lord's  supper  when  baptism  was  administered.  In  the 
following  extract,  Justin  narrates  the  ordinary  celebration 
of  the  supper  on  the  Lord's-day.  "  On  the  day  called 
Sunday,  we  all  assemble  together,  both  those  who  reside 
in  the  country,  and  they  who  dwell  in  the  city,  and  the 
commentaries  of  the  apostles  and  the  writings  of  the 
25  Justin  Martyr,  by  C.  Semisch,  Vol.  I,  p.  72.    Trans.  Ed.   1843. 


340  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

prophets  are  read  as  long  as  time  permits.  When  the 
reader  has  ended,  the  president,  in  an  address,  makes  an 
application,  and  enforces  an  imitation  of  the  excellent 
things  which  have  been  read.  The7i  ive  all  stand  up 
together,  and  offer  2ip  our  'prayers.  After  our  prayers,  as 
I  have  said,  bread  and  wine  and  water  are  brought,  and 
the  president,  in  like  manner,  offers  prayers  and  thanks- 
givings, according  to  his  ability,  oaij  dvvajuig  ^vra,  and  the 
people  respond,  saying  Amen  !"26 

Justin  lived  for  some  time  at  Ephesus,  and  became  a 
convert  to  Christianity  in  that  city.  So  that  the  above  is 
doubtless  an  account  of  the  religious  rites  of  that  venerable 
church  founded  by  the  great  apostle,  and  the  scene  of  many 
of  his  most  interesting  labors.  It  is  peculiarly  gratifying 
to  learn,  from  a  witness  so  unexceptionable,  that  this 
church  continues  still  to  worship  God  in  all  the  simplicity 
of  the  primitive  disciples.  They  meet  as  brethren  in 
Christ ;  they  exchange  still  the  apostolical  salutation,  the 
kiss  of  charity.  The  Scriptures  are  read,  and  the  presi- 
dent or  pastor  makes  a  familiar  address,  enforcing  the 
practical  duties  which  have  been  presented  in  the  reading. 
A  prayer  is  offered  in  the  consecration  of  the  sacred  ele- 
ments, in  which  the  suppliant  prays  according  to  his  ability, 
following  only  the  suggestions  of  his  own  heart,  without  any 
form.  After  this,  they  receive  the  bread  and  the  wine  in 
remembrance  of  Christ.  All  is  done  in  the  affectionate 
confidence,  the  simplicity,  and  singleness  of  heart  of  the 
primitive  disciples.^''' 

The  testimony  of  Justin,  however,  is  claimed  on  both 
sides.  The  whole  controversy  hinges  on  that  vexed  pas- 
sage, oar]  dlvaiiig  (iuro).  The  congregation  all  stood  up, 
and  the  president  prayed,  oarj  dvvafiig  auno,  according  to 
his   ability.     Some   understand   by  this   phrase,  that   he 

26  Apol.,  1,  61,  65,  67,  pp.  71,  82,  83.     See  above,  167. 

27  Comp.  Schoene's  Geschichtsforshungen  der  Kirch.  Gebrauche,  1,  pp. 
102,103, 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  341 

•prayed  ivith  as  loud  a  voice  as  he  could;  cujus  mentio,  est 
ejus  refutatio.^^  Others,  with  all  the  ardor  and  fermicij 
of  his  soul. 

Such  are  the  interpretations  of  those  who  contend  for 
the  use  of  a  liturgy  in  the  primitive  church.  On  the 
other  hand,  Justin  is  understood  to  say,  that  the  president 
prayed  as  well  as  he  coidd^  to  the  best  of  his  abihty,  or  as 
Tertullian  says,  "  exproprio  ingeuio.''^  If  this  be  the  true 
meaning,  it  leads  to  the  conclusion  that  the  prayers  offered 
on  this  occasion  were  strictly  extempore.  This  is  the  in- 
terpretation, not  only  of  non-conformists  generally,  but  of 
some  churchmen.  It  is  the  only  fair  interpretation  of  the 
prayer,  according  to  the  usus  loquendi  of  this  author. 

The  same  expression  occurs  in  other  passages  of  our 
author,  which  may  serve  to  illustrate  the  sense  in  which 
he  uses  this  equivocal  phrase.  "  We,  who  worship 
the  Ruler  of  the  Universe,  are  not  atheists.  We  affirm, 
as  we  are  taught,  that  he  has  no  need  of  blood,  li- 
bations, and  incense.  But,  with  prayer  and  thanks- 
givings, we  praise  him  according  to  our  ability,  oo-j; 
dvpuf^ag,  for  all  which  we  enjoy,  icp'  olg  nQoacfego/neda 
nuaiVj  having  learned  that,  worthily  to  honor  him  is, 
not  to  consume  in  fire  by  sacrifice,  what  he  has  provided 
for  our  sustenance,  but  to  bestow  it  upon  ourselves  and 
upon  the  needy ;  and  to  show  ourselves  thankful  to  him 
by  our  solemn  thanksgivings  for  our  birth,  our  health,  and 
all   that   he   has   made ;    and  for   the  vicissitudes  of  the 


season. 


'29 


The  Catholic  and  Episcopal  rendering  of  this  passage 
makes  the  author  say,  that,  in  all  our  offerings,  eq'  olg 
TtQoacpegofisda  Tzaaip,  we  praise  him,  oai]  dvva^ig^  with  the 
utmost  fervency  of  devotion.  This,  however,  is  a  mis- 
taken rendering  of  the  verb,  nqoacpEQouav^  which,  in  the 

2S  The  very  mention  of  which  is  a  sufficient  refutation. 
29  Apol.  1,  c.  13,  p.  50,  51. 
29* 


342  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

middle  voice,  means  not  to  offer  in  sacrifice,  or  to  worship, 
but  to  participate,  to  enjoy.  So  it  is  rendered  by  Scapula, 
Hedericus,  Bretschneider,  Passow,  &c.  The  passage  re- 
lates, not  to  an  act  of  sacrifice,  nor  of  public  ivorship,  as  the 
connection  shows,  but  to  deeds  of  piety  towards  God,  and 
of  benevolence  to  men,  done  according  to  their  ability,  by 
which  they  offered  the  best  refutation  of  the  groundless 
calumnies  of  their  enemies,  who  had  charged  them  with  an 
atheistical  neglect  of  the  gods.  The  declaration  is,  that 
for  all  their  blessings  they  express,  according  to  their 
ability,  their  thanksgivings  to  God,  and  testify  their  grati- 
tude by  deeds  of  charity  to  their  fellow-men. 

"  Having,  therefore,  exhorted  you,  oo-?;  dvva/nig,  accord- 
ing to  our  ability,  both  by  reason,  and  a  visible  sign  or 
figure,  we  know  that  we  shall  henceforth  be  blameless  if 
you  do  not  believe,  for  ive  have  done  what  we  could  for  your 
conversion.'" "^^  He  had  done  what  he  could;  by  various 
efforts  of  argument  and  exhortation,  and  by  visible  signs 
he  had  labored,  according  to  his  ability,  to  bring  them  to 
receive  the  truth.  The  exhortation  was  the  free  expressions 
of  his  heart's  desire  for  their  conversion.  Can  there  be 
any  doubt  that  the  phrase  denotes  the  same  freedom  of 
expression  in  prayer  ?  These  passages  appear  to  us  clearly 
to  illustrate  the  usus  loquendi  of  our  author,  and  justify 
our  interpretation  of  the  phrase  in  question.^i 

If  one  desires  further  satisfaction  on  this  point,  he  has 
only  to  turn  to  the  works  of  Origen,  in  which  this  and 
similar  forms  of  expression  are  continually  occurring,  to 
denote  the  invention,  ability,  and  powers  of  the  mind. 
Origen,  in  his  reply  to  the  calumnies  of  Celsus,  proposes 
to  refute  them,  "  according  to  his  abiHty."32     j^  }i|s  preface, 

30  Apol.  1,  c.  55,  p.  77. 

31  Comp.  King,  in  our  Antiquities,  pp.  213 — 215.    Note. 

^^  O'V/y  dvi'af.iig,  Lib.  6,  §  1,  Vol,  I,  p.  694,  so  also,  ^fard  t6 
dvvawv,  §12,  p.  638. 


PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH.        343 

he  has  apologized  for  the  Christians  "  as  well  as  he 
could. "33  These  Christians  sought,  "  as  much  as  possible," 
to  preserve  the  purity  of  the  church. ^^  They  strive  to 
discover  the  hidden  meaning  of  God's  word,  "  according 
to  the  best  of  their  abilities. "35  Jn,  these  instances  the 
reference  is  not  to  the  fervor  of  the  spirits,  the  ardor  of  the 
mind,  but  to  the  exercise  of  the  mental  powers.  The  act 
performed  is  done  according  to  the  invention,  the  ingenuity, 
the  talents  of  the  agents  in  each  case. 

Basil,  in  giving  instructions  how  to  pray,  advises  to 
make  choice  of  scriptural  forms  of  thanksgiving,  and  when 
you  have  praised  him  thus,  according  to  your  ability^  cog 
dvvacrat,  exactly  equivalent  to  oai]  dvvarjig, — then  he  ad- 
vises the  supplicant  to  proceed  to  petitions. 36  The  Greeks 
and  the  Romans  pray  each  in  their  own  language,  accord- 
ing to  Origen,  and  each  praises  him  as  he  is  ahle?'^  But 
enough ;  the  reader  may  safely  be  left  to  his  own  conclusions. 

We  come  next  to  Tertullian.  "  We  Christians  pray 
with  eyes  uplifted,  with  hands  outspread,  with  head  uncov- 
ered ;  and,  .  .  loithout  a  monitor^  because  from  the  heart.^^^^ 
Can  this  be  the  manner  of  one  praying  from  a  prayer- 
book  ?  Clarkson  has  shown,  with  his  usual  clearness,  that 
the  heathen  worshipped  by  a  ritual,  .  .  and  rehearsed  their 

^^  Jvaroc  iriv   Ttagovaav  dvva/uiv,  Praefall,  Lib.  contr.  Cel. 
^*  O^'ai]  dvvafiig,  Contr.  Cel.,  Lib.  3,  VoL  I,  p.  482. 

35  Lib.  6,  §  2,  p.  630.  Comp.  also  in  Comment,  in  Math.,  oar]  dvva^tg, 
Tom.  17,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  809,  zaia  to  dvvaTOV,  Tom.  16,  Vol.  TIT,  p.  735, 
naxa  dvvafxiv,  Tom.  17,  Vol.  TIT,  p.  779,  also  Vol.  IV,  p.  6,  Jcarcc  T7/y* 
TtaQOvaav  dvva/iuv,  Tom.  17,  Vol.  ITT,  p.  794. 

Since  writing  the  above,  Clarkson's  Discourse  on  Liturgies  has  fallen 
under  notice,  in  which  many  other  passages  are  given  from  Justin,  Origen, 
Chrysostom,  Basil,  &c.,  all  illustrating  the  same  use  of  the  phrase,  pp.  68 — 
73,114—121. 

36  Basil,  De  Ascet.,  Vol.  II,  p.  536. 

"  (hg   dvvaTui,   Origen,  Contra  Cels.,  Lib.  8,  c.  37,  p.  769. 

33  Illuc  sursum  suspicientes  Christiani  manibus  expansis,  quia  innocnis, 
capite  nudo,  quia  erubescimus  3  denique  sine  monitore,  quia  de  pectore 
oramus. — ApoL,  c.  30. 


344  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

prayers  from  a  book;  and  that  Tertullian  says  this  to 
contrast  the  Christian  mode  of  worship  with  these  heart- 
less forms.  These  warm-hearted  Christians  needed  no 
such  promptings  to  give  utterance  to  their  devotions.  Out 
of  the  abundance  of  the  heart  the  mouth  speaketh. 

Again,  "  "When  the  sacramental  supper  is  ended,  and  we 
have  washed  our  hands,  and  the  candles  are  lighted,  every 
one  is  invited  to  sing  unto  God,  as  he  is  able ;  either  in  psalms 
collected  from  the  Holy  Scriptures,  or  composed  by  himself, 
de  proprio  ingeiiio.  And  as  we  began,  so  we  conclude  all 
with  prayer."  39 

From  Tertullian  we  have  the  earliest  information  re- 
specting the  religious  ordinances  of  the  churches  in  Africa. 
The  reader  will  not  fail  to  notice,  that  this  church  also 
retains  still  the  simplicity  of  the  apostolical  churches, 
mingled  with  some  Roman  customs.  The  brethren  form 
a  similar  fraternity.  Their  religious  worship  opens  with 
prayer,  after  which  the  Scriptures  are  read,  and  familiar 
remarks  offered  upon  them.  Then  follows  the  sacramental 
supper,  or  more  properly  the  love-feast  of  the  primitive 
church,  which  they  begin  with  prayer.  After  the  supper, 
any  one  is  invited  to  offer  a  sacred  song,  either  from  the 
Scriptures,  or  indited  by  himself.  And  the  whole  ends 
with  prayer.  The  entire  narrative  indicates  a  free,  infor- 
mal mode  of  worship,  as  far  removed  from  that  which  is 
directed  by  the  agenda  and  rituals  of  liturgical  worship 
as  can  well  be  conceived. 

In  the  same  connection,  Tertullian  also  forcibly  illus- 
trates the  sincerity  and  purity  of  this  primitive  worship. 
Speaking  of  the  subjects  of  their  prayers,  he  says,  "These 
blessings  I  cannot  persuade  myself  to  ask  of  any  but  of 
him,  from  whom  alone  I  know  that  I  can  obtain  them. 
For  he  only  can  bestow  them.  And  to  me  he  has  cov- 
enanted to  grant  them.     For  I  am  his  servant  and  him 

39  Apol.,  c.  39. 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  345 

only  do  I  serve.  For  this  service  I  stand  exposed  to  death, 
while  I  offer  to  him  the  noblest  and  best  sacrifice  which 
he  requires, — yrayer  proceeding  from  a  chaste  body,  an 
innocent  soul,  and  a  sanctified  spirity^^  Beautiful  exem- 
plification of  the  words  of  our  Lord  to  the  woman  of 
Samaria,  "  Believe  me,  the  hour  cometh,  when  ye  shall 
neither  in  this  mountain,  nor  yet  at  Jerusalem,  worship  the 
Father.  God  is  a  Spirit,  and  they  that  worship  him  must 
worship  him  in  spirit  and  in  truth."     John  4:  21,  24. 

The  authority  of  Tertullian  is  against  the  use  of  forms 
of  prayer.  "We  pray,"  says  he,  '■'■ivithout  a  monitor,  be- 
cause from  the  heart,""  sine  monitore  quid  depectore.  Much 
ingenuity  has  been  employed  to  reconcile  this  expression 
with  the  use  of  a  prayer-book,  but  viewed  in  connection 
with  the  freedom  and  simplicity  in  which  their  worship 
was  conducted,  its  obvious  import  is  sufficiently  apparent. 
He  justifies,  indeed,  the  use  of  the  Lord's  prayer ;  but 
seems  to  intimate  that  to  God  alone  belongs  the  right  of 
prescribing  forms  of  prayer.  "  God  alone,"  says  he,  "  can 
teach  us  how  he  would  be  addressed  in  prayer.  But, 
he  adds,  "  our  Lord,  who  foresaw  the  necessities  of  men, 
after  he  had  delivered  this  form  of  prayer,  said  '  Ask  and 
ye  shall  receive  ; '  and  there  are  some  things  which  need 
to  be  asked,  according  to  every  one's  circumstances;  the 
rightful  and  ordinary  being  first  used  as  a  foundation,  we 
may  lawfully  add  other  occasional  desires,^i  and  make  this 
the  basis  of  other  petitions." 

From  this  passage  it  appears  that  their  manner  was,  at 
the  beginning  of  the  third  century,  to  repeat  the  Lord's 
prayer  as  the  basis  and  pattern  of  all  appropriate  prayer 
to  God,  and  then  to  enlarge  in  free,  unpremeditated  sup- 
plications, according  to   their  circumstances  and  desires. 

There  is  another  circumstance  mentioned  above  by  Ter- 
tullian, v/hich  shows  how  far  the  worship  of  the  primitive 

40  Apol.,  c.  30.  "  41  De  Orat.,  c.  9. 


346  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Christians  was  at  this  time  from  being  confined  to  the 
prescribed  and  unvarying  formalities  of  a  ritual.  It  ap- 
pears that  in  their  social  worship  each  was  invited  forth  to 
sing  praises  to  God,  either  from  the  holy  Scriptures,  or 
"c?e  propria  ingenio,''^  of  his  oivn  composing.  Grant,  if 
you  please,  that  these  sacred  songs  may  have  been  pre- 
viously composed  by  each.  They  are  still  his  own,  and 
have  to  the  hearer  all  the  novelty  and  variety  of  an  occa- 
sional and  extemporaneous  effusion.  So  he  who  leads  in 
prayer,  like  the  one  who  sung  his  song,  may  offer  a  free 
prayer  which  he  has  previously  meditated.  But  in  the 
opinion  of  many,  such  songs  may  have  been  offered  im- 
promptu, like  the  songs  of  Moses  and  Miriam,  and  Deborah, 
Simeon  and  Anna.  Augustine  speaks  of  such  songs,  and 
ascribes  to  divine  inspiration  the  ability  to  indite  them. 
The  improvisatori  of  the  present  age  are  an  example  of  the 
extent  to  which  such  gifts  may  be  cultivated  without  any 
supernatural  aid.^^  jf^  therefore,  such  freedom  was  allowed 
in  their  psalmody,  much  more  might  it  be  expected  in  their 
prayers. 

7.  The  attitude  of  the  primitive  Christians  in  prayer  is 
against  the  supposition  that  they  used  a  prayer-book. 
What,  according  to  Tertullian  and  others,  was  this  attitude  ? 
It  was  with  arms  and  eyes  raised  towards  heaven,  and 
hands  outspread,43  or  it  was  kneeling  and  prostrate,  with 
the  eyes  closed,  to  shut  out  from  view  every  object  that 
might  divert  the  mind  from  its  devotions ;  or,  as  Origen 
expresses  it,  "  closing  the  eyes  of  his  senses,  hut  erecting 
those  of  his  mind^  Few  facts  in  ancient  history  are  better 
attested  than  this.  The  coins  that  were  struck  in  honor 
of  Constantino,  represented  him  in  the  attitude  of  prayer. 

42  Comp.  Walch.  De  Hymn.  Eccl.  Apost.,  §  20.  Munter,  Metr.  Offen- 
bar.  Pref. 

43  Illuc  sursum  suspicientes  Christiani  manibus  expansis.  Tertul.,  Apol. 
c.  30.  Comp.  De  Orat.,  c.  11.  Ady.  Marcion,  c.  23.  Clemens.  Alex. 
Strom.,  7. 


PRAYERS  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE,  CHURCH.        347 

But  how  ?  not  with  prayer-book  in  hand,  but  loith  hands  ex- 
tended  and  eyes  wpturned,  as  if  looking  towards  heaven, 
(x>g  ^vbi  ^Unsiv  doxelv  avaieTa^evog.^'^ 

Now  all  this,  if  not  absolutely  incompatible  with  the  use 
of  a  liturgy,  must,  to  say  the  least,  be  very  inconvenient. 
Can  we  suppose  that  this  attitude  would  have  been  assumed 
at  the  beginning-  in  the  use  of  a  cumbersome  roll  ? 

8.  We  have  yet  to  add  that  the  manner  in  which  pre- 
conceived prayer  began  to  be  used  is  decisive  against  any 
divine  authority  for  the  use  of  them.  It  is  an  acknowledged 
historical  fact,  that  in  the  earliest  stages  of  the  Episcopal 
system,  there  was  not  any  settled  and  invariable  form  of 
prayer.  All  that  was  required  was,  that  the  prayers  should 
not  be  unpremeditated,  but  previously  composed  and  com- 
mitted to  writing.  Still  they  were  occasional,  and  may 
have  had  all  the  variety  and .  adaptation  of  extempore 
prayers.  This  fact  strikingly  exhibits  an  intermediate  state 
in  the  transition  of  the  church  from  that  freedom  and 
absence  of  forms  which  characterized  her  earliest  and 
simplest  worship,  to  the  imposing  formalities  of  a  later 
date.  But  it  precludes  the  supposition  that  an  authorized 
liturgy  could  have  previously  existed. ^^ 

9.  If  it  were  necessary  to  multiply  arguments  on  this 
point  we  might  mention  the  secret  discipline  of  the  church 
as  evidence  against  the  use  of  a  liturgy.  This  of  itself  is 
regarded  by  Schone  and  others,  as  conclusive  on  this  sub- 
ject ;  a  written  and  prescribed  liturgy  being  quite  incom- 
patible with  these  mysteries.  Basil  refused  to  give  expla- 
nations, in  writing  to  Miletus,  but  referred  him  to  Theophrast 
for  verbal  information,  that  so  the  mysteries  might  not 
be  divulged  by  what  he  would  have  occasion  to  write. 
"Mysteries,"  said  Origen  also,  with  reference  to  the  same 
point,  "  must  not  be  committed  to  writing."     The  sacra- 

44  Euseb.,  Vit.  Const.,  Lib.  c.  15. 

45  Comp.  Riddle's  Christ.  Antiq.;  p.  370. 


34S  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

mental  prayers  and  baptismal  rites,  which  should  have  a 
place  in  a  liturgy,  were  among  these  profound  mysteries. 
How  they  could  be  kept  veiled  in  such  mystery,  if  recorded 
in  a  prayer-book,  is  past  our  comprehension. 

Basil,  of  the  fourth  century,  informs  us  that  he  pro- 
nounced the  doxology  with  varied  phraseology — that  the 
baptismal,  was  unrecorded,  and  that  the  church  had  not 
even  a  written  creed  or  confession. ^^  Clarkson  has  shown 
by  a  multitude  of  citations,  that  the  same  is  true,  of  every 
part  of  religious  worship  which  a  liturgy  prescribes.  He 
has  also  given  many  instances  of  occasional  prayers,  which 
are  inconsistent  with  the  supposition  that  they  rehearsed 
from  a  prayer-book.'*^ 

Finally,  the  origin  of  these  ancient  liturgies,  and  the 
occasion  on  which  they  were  prepared,  is  no  recommenda- 
tion of  them. 

They  had  their  origin  in  an  ignorant  and  degenerate 
age.  The  utmost  that  even  the  credulity  of  the  Tractari- 
ans  pretends  to  claim  in  favor  of  their  antiquity,  is,  that 
"  one  may  be  traced  with  tolerable  certainty  to  the  fourth 
century,  and  three  others  to  the  middle  of  the  fifth."  ^^ 
Ambrose,  Augustine,  Gregory,  Basil  and  Chrysostom,  those 
great  luminaries  of  the  church,  had  passed  away,  and  an 
age  of  ignorance  and  superstition  had  succeeded.  Riddle, 
of  Oxford,  the  faithful  chronicler  of  the  church,  gives  the 
following  sketch  of  the  degeneracy  of  this  age, — the  end  of 
the  fourth  century. 

^^  Supe7'stitious  veneration  of  martyrs  and  their  relics, 
credulous  reliance  upon  their  reputed  powers  of  interces- 
sion, reports  of  miracles  and  visions  at  their  tombs,  and 
other  follies  of  this  kind,  form  a  prominent  feature  in  the 
religion  of  the  age. 

^^'AvTTjv  de  ojiioloylav  trig  nluTSw:  elg  narsga  y.al  iiov  xal 
fxyiov  TTVfvfja  ix  nolwp  yQa/itfiUTiOV  £;(Oiii£v. — Be  Spiritu  Sancto, 
c.  27,  p.  67,  comp.  p.  65. 

47  Discourse  on  Liturgies.  48  Tract,.  No.  63,  Vol.  I,  p.  439. 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  349 

^^New  Festivals  durhig  this  century. — Christmas-day, 
Ascension-day,  Whitsunday  (in  the  modern  sense). 

^^ Baptismal  Rites,  Ceremonies,  Sf-c. — 1.  Wax  tapers  in 
the  hands  of  the  candidates ;  2.  Use  of  salt,  milk,  wine, 
and  honey ;  3.  Baptisteries  ;  4.  Easter  and  Whitsuntide, 
times  of  baptism ;  5.  Twofold  anointing,  before  and  after 
baptism  ;    6.  Dominica  in  Albis. 

"T>^e  lord's  Supper,  1.  was  now  commonly  called  Missa 
by  the  Latins;  2.  Tables  had  come  into  use,  and  were 
now  called  altars;  3.  Liturgies  used  at  the  celebration  of 
the  rite;  4.  Elements  still  administered  in  both  kinds  as 
before  ;    5.  No  private  masses. 

"  Rapid  progress  of  church  oligarchy,  and  formation  of 
the  patriarchate.^' 

.  Again,  A.  D.  439,  "  Christian  morality  declines. — Two 
distinct  codes  of  morals  gradually  formed,  one  for  perfect 
Christians,  and  another  for  the  more  common  class  of 
believers ; — the  former  consisting  of  mysticism  and  ascetic 
or  overstrained  virtue, — the  latter  in  the  performance  of 
outward  ceremonies  and  ritual  observances.  The  distinction 
itself  unsound  and  mischievous ;  the  morality,  to  a  great 
extent,  perverted  or  fictitious. 

"  History  now  records  fewer  examples  of  high  Christian 
character  than  before.  Complaints  of  the  fathers,  and 
decrees  of  councils,  lead  us  to  fear  that  impiety  and  disor-- 
derly  conduct  prevail  within  the  borders  of  the  church  to  a 
melancholy  extent.     Superstition  makes  rapid  progress." ^^ 

Out  of  this  age,  when  nothing  was  introduced  anew, 
"but  corruptions,  and  the  issues  thereof;  no  change  made 
in  the  current  usages,  but  for  the  worse ;  no  motions  from 
its  primitive  posture,  but  downwards  into  degeneracy;" — 
out  of  this  age,  proceeded  the  first  liturgy,  the  ofl^spring  of 
ignorance  and  superstition ! 

49  Riddle's  Chronology,  A.  D.  400,  A.  D.  439, 

30 


350  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

The  clergy  had  become  notoriously  ignorant  and  corrupt, 
unable  suitably  to  guide  the  devotions  of  public  worship; 
and,  to  assist  them  in  their  ignorance  and  incompetence, 
liturgies  were  provided  for  their  use.^^  "  When,  in  pro- 
cess of  time,  the  distinguished  fathers  of  the  church  had 
passed  away,  and  others,  of  an  inferior  standing,  arose  in 
their  place,  with  less  learning  and  talents  for  public  speak- 
ing,— as  barbarism  and  ignorance  continued  to  overspread 
the  .Roman  empire,  and  after  the  secret  mysteries  of  Chris- 
tianity were  done  away,  or,  at  least,  had  assumed  another 
form  of  manifestation, — then,  the  clergy,  not  being  compe- 
tent themselves  to  conduct  the  exercises  of  religious 
worship  to  the  edification  of  the  people,  saw  the  necessity 
■of  providing  themselves  with  written  formulas  for  their 
assistance.  For  this  purpose,  men  were  readily  found  to 
indite  and  transcribe  them.  In  this  manner,  arose  its  for- 
mularies, which  are  known  under  the  name  of  liturgies  and 
missals,  and  which  afterwards,  in  order  to  give  greater 
authority  to  them,  were  ascribed  to  distinguished  men,  and 
even  to  the  apostles  themselves,  as  their  authors."  ^i 

Palmer  ascribes  the  four  original  liturgies,  from  which 
all  others  have  originated,  to  the  Jiftk  ce7itury.  He  thinks, 
however,  that  some  expressions  in  one  may,  perhaps,  be 
traced  to  the  fourth.  Even  the  Oxford  Tractarians  claim 
for  them  no  higher  antiquity.  "  One,  that  of  Basil,  can  be 
traced  with  tolerable  certainty  to  the  fourth  century,  and 
three  others  to  the  middle  of  the  fifth."  ^^ 

50  The  reader  will  find  abundant  evidence  of  this  ignorance,  in  the  coun- 
cils of  this  age,  and  in  Blondell,  Apologia  Hieron.,  pp.  500,  501,  Clarkson, 
Discourse  on  Liturgies,  pp.  191 — 197,  and  Witsius,  Exercitat.  De  Oratione, 
§  30,  31,  p.  85.  In  the  council  of  Ephesus,  in  the  fifth  century,  Elias  signs 
his  name  by  the  hand  of  another,  because  he  could  not  write  his  name;  eo 
quod,  nesciam  Uteras.     So,  also,  Cajumas,  propterea  quod  literas  ignorem. 

51  Geschictsforschungen,  der  Kirch.  Gebrauche,  Vol.  II,  pp.  120,  121. 
62  Tracts  for  the  Times,  No.  63,  Vol.  I,  p.  439. 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  351 

Now  we  seriously  ask,  Shall  superstition,  ignorance,  and 
barbarism,  rather  than  God's  own  word,  teach  us  how  we 
may  most  acceptably  worship  him  ?  Shall  we  forsake  the 
example  of  Christ  and  the  apostles,  to  imitate  ignorant 
men,  who  first  made  use  of  a  liturgy,  because  they  were 
unable,  without  it,  decently  to  conduct  the  worship  of  God  ? 

How  forcibly  does  the  formality  of  such  liturgical  ser- 
vices contrast  with  the  simplicity  and  moral  efficacy  of 
primitive  worship!  Christianity  ascends  the  throne,  and, 
in  connection  with  the  secular  power,  gives  laws  to  the 
state.  The  government  has  a  monarch  at  its  head ;  and 
the  church,  a  bishop  in  close  alliance  with  him.  The 
simple  rites  of  religion,  impressive  and  touching  by  their 
simplicity,  give  place  to  an  imposing  and  princely  parade 
in  religious  worship.  Splendid  churches  are  erected.  The 
clergy  are  decked  out  with  gorgeous  vestments,  assisted  by 
anumerous  train  of  attendants,  and  proceed  in  the  worship 
of  God  with  all  the  formalities  of  a  prescribed  and  compli- 
cated ritual.  Age  after  age  these  liturgical  forms  continue 
to  increase  with  the  superstition  and  degeneracy  of  the 
church,  until  her  service  becomes  encumbered  with  an 
inconceivable  mass  of  missals,  breviaries,  rituals,  pontificals, 
graduals,  antiphonals,  psalteries,  and  what  not,  alike  unin- 
telligible and  unmeaning. 

But  the  simplicity  of  primitive  Christianity  gives  it 
power.  It  has  no  cumbersome  rites  to  embarrass  the  truth 
of  God.  Nothing  to  dazzle  the  eye,  to  amuse  and  occupy 
the  mind  that  is  feeling  after  God,  if  haply  it  may  find  him. 
AH  its  solemn,  simple  rites  are  in  harmony  with  the  sim- 
plicity of  that  system  of  gospel  truth,  which  is  at  once  the 
wisdom  and  the  power  of  God,  in  the  conversion  of  men. 
They  present  an  easy  and  natural  medium  for  the  commu- 
nication of  religious  truth  to  the  soul,  and  lay  the  mind 
open  to  its  quickening  power,  without  the  parade  of  out- 
ward forms  to  hinder  its  secret  influences  upon  the  mind. 


352  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 


REMARKS. 

1.  To  the  people  of  the  congregation  forms  of  prayer 
are  inappropriate. 

There  is  an  intimacy  in  all  our  joys,  our  sorrows,  and 
our  trials;  an  intimacy  and  identity  that  makes  them 
peculiarly  our  own ;  so  that  they  find  not  a  just  expression 
in  the  language  of  another.  The  language  may  be  more 
select,  more  appropriate,  in  the  estimation  of  another  who 
knows  not  my  heart,  but  it  is  not  my  own,  and  but  poorly 
expresses  my  emotions  and  desires.  How  variable  withal, 
is  this  infinite  play  of  the  passions  in  the  heart;  and  how 
preposterous  the  attempt  to  give  utterance  to  them  in  one 
unvarying  tone  !  As  if  the  harp  of  David  were  always 
strung  to  the  same  key  and  sounded  one  unchanging  note  ! 
First,  stereotype  the  mind  and  heart  of  man,  and  then,  is 
he  prepared  to  express  his  devotions  in  the  unvarying 
letter  of  a  liturgy. 

Among  all  the  ills  that  man  is  heir  to,  new  and  unfore- 
seen calamities  are  ever  and  anon  breaking  out,  which 
may  bring  men  to  the  throne  of  grace  with  supplications 
and  entreaties  of  a  special  character.  Shall  we  wait  now 
until  notice  is  given  to  the  diocesan  in  the  distant  metropo- 
lis, and  a  prayer  returned  at  last  duly  prepared  for  the 
occasion  ?  But  before  it  comes,  that  occasion  has  gone  by, 
and  given  place  to  something  else  for  which  the  bishop's 
form  is  altogether  inappropriate. 

2.  Liturgical  forms  .  become  wearisome  by  constant 
repetition. 

The  love  of  change  is  inherent  in  the  breast  of  man.  We 
must  have  variety.  Without  it,  even  our  refined  pleasures 
lose  their  charm  in  a  dull  and  dead  monotony.  So  a 
liturgy,  however  excellent  in  diction,  or  noble  in  sentiment, 
loses  its  interest  by  perpetual  repetition.     The  continual 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  353 

recurrence  even  of  the  best  possible  form,  that  of  the  Lord's 
prayer,  has  this  effect  upon  our  mind.  We  have  heard  it 
at  the  table  in  our  daily  meals ;  at  morning  and  evening 
prayer,  and  in  some  instances,  it  has  been  the  only  prayer 
offered  in  our  hearing;  at  funerals,  at  marriages,  in  bap- 
tism, in  confirmation,  at  the  sacrament  of  the  Lord's  sup- 
per ;  and  in  every  public  service,  not  once  merely,  but 
twice  or  thrice,  and  even  more  than  this  ;  as  if  no  relig- 
ious act  could  be  rightly  done,  without  bringing  in  some- 
where the  Lord's  prayer.  Such  ceaseless  repetitions  only 
create  a  weariness  of  spirit,  in  which  one  earnestly  craves 
a  freer  and  more  informal  mode  of  worship.  Let  one  ex- 
ample suffice  for  illustration.  "How  often  have  I  been 
grieved  to  observe  coldness  and  comparative  indifference 
in  the  reading-desk,  but  warmth  and  animation  in  the 
pulpit !  In  how  many  different  places  have  I  been  obliged 
to  conclude,  this  man  preaches  in  earnest,  but  prays  with- 
indifference  !  I  have  asked  myself,  I  have  asked  others, 
what  is  the  reason  of  such  conduct."  ^^  The  case  so  em- 
barrassing to  our  churchman  is  easily  explained.  In  the 
reading-desk,  the  preacher  utters  the  cold  dictations  of 
another ;  in  the  pulpit  he  expresses  the  warm  suggestions 
of  the  heart.  Here,  accordingly,  his  utterance  is  instinct 
with  life  and  spirit ;  there,  it  is  changed  by  perpetual 
repetition  into  chilling  indifference. 

3.  The  significancy  of  a  liturgy  is  lost  by  constant 
repetition. 

To  one  who  but  seldom  frequents  an  Episcopal  house 
of  worship,  there  may  be  much  that  is  impressive  in  the 
liturgy.  But  the  impression,  we  apprehend,  must  be  greatly 
diminished  by  a  constant  attendance.  The  words  of  the 
prayer-book,  now  grown  familiar,  lose  in  a  great  degree 
their  significancy.  They  fall  upon  the  ear,  like  the  mur- 
mur of  the  distant  waterfall,  lulling  the  mind  to  repose,  or 

55  Churchman,  in  Christian  Observer,  1804;  p.  271. 

30* 


354  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

leaving  it  to  the  undisturbed  enjoyment  of  its  idle  musings. 
The  listless  inattention  of  men  to  the  reading  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, is  a  subject  of  public  and  painful  notoriety ;  and  the 
reason  assigned  is,  that,  by  long  familiarity  and  constant 
repetition,  the  words  even  of  the  great  Jehovah  fall  upon 
the  ear  without  making  any  adequate  impression  on  the 
mind.  The  same  result,  in  a  much  higher  degree,  may 
be  expected  from  the  constant  recital  of  the  liturgy.  It 
may  be  a  form  of  sound  words  ^  but  it  becomes  in  time  no 
more  than  a  form  of  words,  received  with  passive  reverence 
without  the  requisite  impression. 

4.  A  liturgy  often  is  not  in  harmony  with  the  subject  of 
discourse. 

The  preceding  remarks  relate  to  the  disadvantages  of 
the  liturgy  to  the  people;  the  present,  and  some  that  fol- 
low, have  reference  to  the  inconvenience  of  the  clergy  from 
the  same  source.  Every  preacher  knows  the  importance 
of  harmony  in  his  services.  And  if  permitted,  in  the  free- 
dom of  primitive  worship,  to  direct  them  accordingly,  he 
studiously  seeks  to  make  the  impression  from  the  prayers, 
the  psalmody,  and  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  coincident 
with  the  subject  of  his  sermon  ;  so  that  all  may  conspire 
to  produce  a  single  impression  upon  the  hearer.  The 
final  result  upon  the  audience  is  ascribable  in  a  great 
degree  to  the  studied  harmony  throughout  the  entire  ser- 
vice. But  here  the  liturgy  interposes  its  unyielding  forms, 
to  break  up  the  harmony  of  the  service,  and  sadly  to  im- 
pair the  effect  of  it  upon  the  audience. 

5.  The  liturgy  is  not  a  suitable  preparation  for  the  im- 
pression of  the  sermon. 

Much  of  the  practical  effect  of  the  preacher's  discourse 
depends  on  having  the  mind  duly  prepared  for  it.  This 
preparation  results,  in  a  great  degree,  from  a  happy  adap- 
tation of  the  preliminary  services  to  this  end.  But  the 
preliminaries  of  the  liturgy  move  on  with  unvarying  for- 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  355 

mality,  carrying  the  mind,  it  may  be,  directly  away  from 
the  subject  of  the  discourse  that  is  to  follow,  or  leaving 
the  audience  uninterested  and  unprepared,  for  any  quick- 
ened impression  from  the  preacher.  He  rises  to  address 
them,  with  the  disheartening  conviction  that  they  are  in 
no  state  rightly  to  receive  what  he  has  to  say.  He  ad- 
vances in  his  discourse,  under  the  consciousness  that  he  is 
toiling  at  a  task  that  is  too  heavy  for  him ;  and  retires  at 
last,  with  the  feeling  that  he  has  only  labored  in  vain,  and 
spent  his  strength  for  nought.  So  in  the  event,  it  appears, 
all  has  been  done  with  cold  and  decent  formality,  but  the 
profiting  of  the  hearer  does  not  appear.  How  much  of 
the  inefRcacy  of  the  pulpit  in  the  Episcopal  church  is 
ascribable  to  this  cause  we  leave  the  reader  to  judge. 

6.  A  liturgy  curtails  unreasonably  the  time  allotted  to 
the  sermon. 

A  sermon  we  know  maybe,  and  often  is,  too  long;  it 
may  also  be  too  short.  Following  the  protracted  recitals 
of  the  liturgy,  it  is  necessarily  crowded  into  a  narrow 
space,  at  the  conclusion  of  a  service  which  has  already  un- 
fitted the  audience  for  a  quiet,  sustained  attention  to  the 
preacher.  What  he  has  to  say,  must  be  quickly  said  ;  he, 
therefore,  hurries  through  a  brief  and  superficia.1  exposition 
of  his  subject,  and  dismisses  it  with  a  hasty  application, 
before  it  has  had  time  to  assume  in  the  hearer's  mind 
that  importance  which  belongs  to  its  momentous  truths. 
And  the  final  result  is  that  it  falls  powerless  upon  the 
general  conscience  of  the  audience. 

7.  The  liturgy  exalts  the  inventions  of  man  above  the 
truth  of  God. 

The  liturgy  is  ever  prominently  before  the  audience ; 
claiming  the  first  attention,  the  highest  place  in  all  the 
acts  of  worship.  In  some  liturgies  the  reading  of  the 
Scriptures  forms  no  part  of  the  public  service,  and  in 
others,  the  word  of  God  is  mixed  up  with  a  mass  of  foreign 


356  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ingredients  which  do  but  neutralize  its  power.  The  ten- 
dency of  the  whole  arrangement  is  to  keep  back  the  word 
of  God,  to  hold  in  check  its  power,  to  rob  religious  truth 
of  its  chief  glory  as  the  means  of  salvation,  and  to  sub- 
stitute in  its  place  a  system  of  mere  formalism. 

In  this  connection,  the  profound  remarks  of  Archbishop 
Whately,  on  undue  reliance  on  human  authority,  are 
worthy  of  serious  consideration.  He  exposes  with  great 
force  the  disposition  of  men,  to  "  obtrude  into  the  place  of 
Scripture,  creeds,  catechisms  and  liturgies,  and  other  such 
compositions,  set  forth  by  any  church."  This  disposition 
he  ascribes  to  deep  seated  principles  of  our  nature.  He 
supposes  that  nothing  but  a  miraculous  providence  could 
have  so  directed  the  apostles  and  primitive  Christians,  that 
they  left  no  such  formulary  of  religious  worship,  or  abstract 
of  the  Christian  faith.  "  Such  a  systematic  course  of  inr 
struction,  carrying  with  it  divine  authority,  would  have 
superseded  the  framing  of  any  others — nay,  would  have 
made  even  the  alteration  of  a  single  word,  of  what  would 
on  this  supposition  have  been  Scripture,  appear  an  impious 
presumption.  .  .  So  that  there  would  have  been  an  almost 
inevitable  danger,  that  such  an  authoritative  list  of  credenda 
would  have  been  regarded,  by  a  large  proportion  of  Chris- 
tians, with  a  blind,  unthinking  reverence,  which  would  have 
exerted  no  influence  on  the  character.  They  would  have 
had  a  form  of  godliness ;  but,  denying  the  power  thereof, 
the  form  itself  would  have  remained  with  them  only  the 
corpse  of  departed  religion. "^^ 

Ought  not  then  this  momentous  consideration  to  excite 
a  wise  jealousy  of  a  tendency  which  may  so  easily  be 
abused  ?  In  our  mind  it  is  an  urgent  reason  for  confining 
the  ceremonials  of  religion  within  the  strictest  limits.  But 
this  continual  recital  of  creeds  and  confessions,  this  per- 
petual profession  of  faith  in  the  "  holy  catholic  church," 

54  Errors  of  Romanism;  pp.  49 — 61. 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  357 

these  rites  of  the  ritual  ever  recurring,  and  foremost  in 
importance,  to  which  every  thing  else  gives  place  in  public 
worship, —  who  can  doubt  the  practical  influence  of  all 
this  ?  It  casts  into  shade  and  distance  God's  own  word. 
It  brings  forward  the  dictations  of  canonized  tradition  as 
the  rule  of  faith  and  of  worship  ;  and  spiritual  truth  is 
forgotten  in  this  parading  of  the  ceremonials  of  religion. 

7.  We  object  to  the  popish  origin  and  tendencies  of  the 
English  liturgy. 

It  is  a  translation  and  compend  of  the  popish  ritual,  and 
savors  too  strongly  still  of  its  origin.  We  hear,  indeed,  so 
much  of  this  "  excellent,"  "  this  noble  and  pathetic  liturgy," 
that  it  seems  almost  like  sacrilege  to  touch  that  holy  thing 
with  other  sentiments  than  those  of  profound  veneration. 
But  we  dislike  its  origin,  and  the  character  which  it  in- 
herits ;  must  we,  in  this  nineteenth  century,  go  back  to  the 
dark  ages  of  popery,  and  learn  from  her  traditions,  her 
superstitions,  how  we  may  best  worship  God  in  spirit  and 
in  truth?  But  this  "pathetic  litany,"  "this  noble  liturgy," 
it  is  said, — "  is  it  not  admirable  ? "  To  which  we  must  still 
reply, 

Timeo  Danaos  et  dona  ferentes !  ss 

Let  us  examine  a  little.  What  change  has  the  liturgy 
undergone,  in  passing  over  from  the  Romish  to  the  English 
church,  and  what  is  the  difference  between  the  two  religions ! 
The  chief  points  of  distinction,  according  to  Hallam,  are 
the  following. 

1.  The  liturgy  was  translated  into  the  vernacular  lan- 
guage of  the  people.  Formerly,  it  had  been  in  an  un- 
known tongue. 

2.  Its  acts  of  idolatrous  worship  to  saints  and  images 
were  expunged. 

55  I  dred  the  Grekes ;  yea,  when  they  offer  gyftes.— Howard's  Trans. 


358  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

3.  Auricular  confession  was  done  away;  or  rather  it 
was  left  to  every  man's  discretion,  and  went  into  neglect. 

4.  "  The  doctrine  of  transubstantiation,  or  the  change, 
at  the  moment  of  consecration,  of  the  substances  of  bread 
and  wine  into  those  of  Christ's  body  and  blood,"  was  dis- 
carded. 

5.  The  celibacy  of  the  clergy  was  done  away.^^ 
With  these  modifications  the  religion  of  Rome  became 

that  of  the  church  of  England.  And  to  this  day,  her 
ritual,  crudely  formed  in  the  infancy  of  Protestanism, 
which  Milton  denominates  "  an  extract  of  the  mass  trans- 
lated," continues  with  little  variation  to  be  the  liturgy  of 
the  whole  Episcopal  church  in  England  and  America. 
Like  the  ancient  liturgies,  it  was  prepared  for  a  priesthood 
who  were  too  ignorant  to  conduct  religious  worship  with 
decency  without  it.  Even  the  book  of  homilies  was  drawn 
up  at  the  same  time,  "to  supply  the  defect  of  preaching, 
which  few  of  the  clergy  at  that  time  were  capable  of 
performing.  "^^ 

Multitudes  in  the  kingdom  were  strongly  attached  still 
to  the  Roman  Catholic  religion.  It  was  a  politic  measure 
to  conciliate  these  as  much  as  possible.  For  various 
reasons,  the  Reformers  sought  to  make  a  gradual,  rather 
than  an  abrupt  departure  from  popery.  The  liturgy  ac- 
cordingly had  then,  and  still  retains  many  popish  affinities. 
These  are  seen  in  the  canonizing  of  saints,  and  celebration 
of  saints'-days ;  in  the  absolutions  of  the  priests,  modified . 
so  as  to  unite  the  Protestant  idea  of  forgiveness  of  sin  by 
God  alone,  with  the  popish  absolution  by  the  priest;  in  the 
endless  reiterations  of  the  Lord's  prayer;  in  the  inordinate 
prominence  that  is  given  to  liturgical  forms ;  in  the  quali- 
fied and  cautious  phraseology  of  the  communion  service, 

56  Constitutional  History,  Vol.  T,  pp.  116—126. 

57  IVeaPs  History  of  Puritans,  1,  p.  90.  Hetherton's  History  of  West- 
minster Divines,  p.  21. 


PRAYERS    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  8e)9 

and  the  special  care  that  all  the  consecrated  bread  and  wine 
shall  be  eaten  and  drank,  so  that  none  of  it  shall  be  carried 
out  of  the  church, — a  point  upon  which  the  papists  are 
ridiculously  superstitious. ^^     These  popish  tenets  are  seen 
particularly  in  the  baptismal  regeneration  of  the  liturgy,  by 
which  the  child  becomes  "  regenerate,  and  grafted  into  the 
body  of  Christ's  church.  .  .  .  We  yield  thee  hearty  thanks, 
most  merciful  Father,  that  it  hath  pleased  thee  to  regene- 
rate this  infant  with  thy  Holy  Spirit,  to  receive  him  for 
thine  own  child  by  adoption."     The  order  of  confirmation 
is  so  conducted  as  to  confirm  one  in  the  delusion,  that  he 
has  become  "  regenerate  by  water,  and  the  Holy  Ghost," 
through  the  instrumentality  of  this  rite,  rather  than  by  that 
grace  which  is  the  gift  of  God.     The  burial  service,  also,  is 
exceedingly  objectionable.     "  Forasmuch  as  it  hath  pleased 
Almighty  God,  of  his  great  mercy,  to  take  unto  himself  the 
soul  of  our  deceased  brother  here  departed,  we  therefore 
commit  his  body  to  the  ground ;    earth  to  earth,  ashes  to 
ashes,  dust  to  dust,  in  sure  and  certain  hope  of  the  resurrec- 
tion to  eternal  life  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."     This 
is  said  of  every  one  alike,  however  profligate  his  life,  how- 
ever hopeless  his  death.     In  the  American  service,  instead 
of  this,  at  the  grave  it  is  said  or  sung,  "I  heard  a  voice  from 
heaven,  saying  unto  me,  '  Write,  from  henceforth  blessed 
are  the  dead  who  die  in  the  Lord;  even  so,  saith  the  Spirit, 
for  they  rest  from  their  labors.'  "    Kev.  14:  13.    The  prac- 
tical influence  of  this  service  is  apparent  from  the  following 
remark  of  Archbishop  Whately.    "  I  have  known  a  person, 
in  speaking  of  a  deceased  neighbor,  whose  character  had 
been  irreligious  and  profligate,  remark,  how  great  a  comfort 
it  was  to  hear  the  words  of  the  funeral  service  read  over 

57  In  the  amendment  of  the  liturgy,  under  Elizabeth,  "the  words  used  in 
distributing  the  elements,  were  so  contrived  as  neither  to  offend  the  Popish, 
or  Lutheran,  or  Zuinglian  communicant."— ii/aWow's  Const.  Hist.,  Vol.  I, 
.  p.  150,  note.    Very  catholic  and  accommodating,  surely! 


360  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

her,  'because,  poor  woman,  she  had  been  such  a  bad 
liver.'"  58 

Without  controversy,  a  temporizing  policy  guided  the 
early  Reformers  in  the  preparation  of  the  English  prayer- 
book.  However  many  of  the  Episcopal  church  may  repu- 
diate the  demi-popish  delusion  of  Puseyism,  which  has 
come  up  over  the  length  and  breadth  of  our  land,  it  is 
indirectly  supported,  if  not  plainly  taught,  in  her  ritual. 
The  English  reformers  attempted  a  sinful  compromise  with 
the  corruptions  of  the  church  of  Rome.  In  the  language  of 
Macaulay,  "  The  scheme  was  merely  to  rob  the  Babylonian 
enchantress  of  her  ornaments ;  to  transfer  the  full  cup  of 
her  sorceries  to  other  hands,  spilling  as  little  as  possible  by 
the  way.  The  Catholic  doctrines  and  rites  were  to  be 
retained  in  the  church  of  England."  ^^ 

The  great  effort  of  a  large  party  in  this  church  at  present 
is  to  reinstate  these  popish  doctrines  and  rites  in  their 
communion, — an  effort  which  Roman  Catholics  regard 
with  the  deepest  interest.  The  celebrated  Dr.  Wiseman 
expresses,  in  the  liveliest  terms,  his  gratification  at  "  the 
movemxcnt"  of  the  Oxford  Tractarians  "towards  Catholic 
ideas  and  Catholic  feelings."  He  has  "watched  its  prog- 
ress with  growing  interest,"  because  he  "saw  in  it  the 
surest  guarantee  and  principle  of  success.  The  course 
which  we  (papists)  ought  to  pursue  seems  simple  and 
clear, — to  admire  and  Hess,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  second 
and  favor,  as  far  as  human  means  can,  the  course  which 
God's  providence  has  opened,  and  is  pursuing;  but  to  be 
careful  how  we  thwart  it.''^^ 

68  Errors  of  Romanism,  p.  25. 

63  Review  of  Hallam's  Constitutional  History. 

«o  Cited  in  Rev.  H.  H.  Beamish's  Letter  to  Dr.  Pusey,  p.  9. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


PSALMODY  OF  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 

The  singing  of  spiritual  songs  constituted,  from  the 
beginning,  an  interesting  and  important  part  of  religious 
worship  in  the  primitive  church.  The  course  of  our  re- 
marks on  this  subject  will  lead  us  to  consider, 

I.  The  argument  for  Christian  psalmody  as  a  part  of 
religious  worship. 

II.  The  mode  of  singing,  in  the  ancient  church. 

III.  The  changes  in  the  psalmody  of  the  church. 

I.  Argument  for  the  psalmody  of  the  primitive  church. 

1.  From  reason. 

Praise  is  the  appropriate  language  of  devotion.  A  fer- 
vent spirit  of  devotion  instinctively  seeks  to  express  itself 
in  song.  In  the  strains  of  poetry,  joined  with  the  melody 
of  music,  it  finds  an  easy  and  natural  utterance  of  its 
elevated  emotions.  Can  it  be  doubted,  then,  that  that 
Spirit  which  was  shed  forth  upon  the  disciples  after  our 
Lord's  ascension,  would  direct  them  to  the  continued  use 
of  the  sacred  psalmody  of  their  own  Scriptures,  indited  by 
the  inspiration  of  the  same  Spirit  ?  Is  it  unreasonable  to 
suppose,  that  the  glad  spirit  with  which  they  continued 
praising  God,  might  direct  them  to  indite  other  spiritual 
songs  to  the  praise  of  their  Lord,  whose  wondrous  life  and 
31 


362  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

death  so  employed  their  contemplations,  and  whose  love  so 
inspired  their  hearts  ?  The  opinion  has  been  expressed  by 
Grotius,  and  is  supported  by  many  others,  that  we  have,  in 
Acts  4:  24 — 30,  an  epitome  of  such  an  early  Christian 
hymn  to  Christ. i 

2.  From  analogy. 

The  singing  of  songs  constituted  a  great  part  of  the  re- 
ligious worship  of  all  ancient  nations.  In  all  their  religious 
festivals,  and  in  their  temples,  those  pagan  nations  sung  to 
the  praise  of  their  idol  gods.^  The  worship  of  the  Jews, 
not  only  in  the  temple,  but  in  their  synagogues  and  in  their 
private  dwellings,  was  celebrated  with  sacred  hymns  to 
God.  Many  of  the  loftiest,  sweetest  strains  of  Hebrew 
poetry  were  sung  by  their  sacred  minstrels  on  such  oc- 
casions. Christ,  himself,  in  his  final  interview  with  his 
disciples,  before  his  crucifixion,  sung  with  them  the  cus- 
tomary paschal  songs,  at  the  institution  of  the  sacrament  ;3 
and,  by  his  example,  sanctified  the  use  of  sacred  songs  in 
the  Christian  church.  All  analogy  drawn  from  other 
forms  of  religious  worship,  pagan  and  Jewish,  requires  us 
to  ascribe  to  the  primitive  Christians  the  use  of  spiritual 
songs  in  their  public  devotions. 

3.  From  Scripture. 

The  same  is  clearly  indicated  in  the  writings  of  the 
New  Testament. 

1  Comp.  Augusti,  DenkwUrdigkeiten,  5,  248. 

2  Semper  id  est  cordi  musis,  semperque  poetis 
Ut  divos  celebrent.  laudes  celebrentque  virorum 
Y'fjveZv  ddavdiTOvg,  {i/ttVElv  (xyadwv  xXia  dcvdg(bv. 

Theocritus,  cited  by  Gerbert,  Mxisica  Sacra,  T.  1, 

Pref.     Comp.  61,  ^  5,  in  which  are  many 

references  of  a  similar  kind. 

3  The  collect  for  such  occasions  is  comprised  in  Psalms  113 — 118,  the 

first  two  before  the  paschal  supper,  and  the  remainder  after  it.    The  theory 

has  been  advanced,  but  without  reason,  that  Christ  himself  indited  the 

hymn  on  this  occasion.     ]N[either  is  it  necessary  to  suppose  that  all  the 

hymns  abovementioned  were  sung  by  him  and  the  disciples  at  this  time. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  363 

Without  doubt,  in  the  opinion  of  Munter,^  the  gift  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  on  the  day  of  Pentecost  was  accompanied  with 
poetic  inspiration,  to  which  the  disciples  gave  utterance  in 
the  rhapsodies  of  spiritual  songs.  Acts  2 :  4,  13,  47.  The 
opinion  of  Grotius  and  others,  with  reference  to  Acts  4 : 
24 — 30,  has  already  been  mentioned.  But  there  are  other 
passages  which  clearly  indicate  the  use  of  religious  songs 
in  the  worship  of  God.  Paul  and  Silas,  lacerated  by  the 
cruel  scourging  which  they  had  received,  and  in  close 
confinement  in  the  inner  prison,  prayed  and  sang  praises 
to  God  at  midnight.  Acts  16:  25.  The  use  of  psalms  and 
hymns,  and  spiritual  songs,  moreover,  is  directly  enjoined 
upon  the  churches,  by  the  apostle,  as  an  essential  part  of 
religious  devotions.  Col.  3 :  16.  Eph.  5 :  19.  The  latter 
epistle  was  a  circular  letter  to  the  Gentile  churches  of 
Asia  ;^  and,  therefore,  in  connection  wdth  that  to  the  church  • 
at  Colosse,  is  explicit  authority  for  the  use  of  Christian 
psalmody  in  the  religious  worship  of  the  apostolical 
churches.6 

The  use  of  such  psalmody,  evidently,  was  not  restricted 
merely  to  the  public  worship  of  God.  In  connection  with 
the  passage  from  Ephesians,  the  apostle  warns  those  whom 
he  addresses  against  the  use  of  wine,  and  the  excesses  to 
which  it  leads,  with  evident  reference  to  those  abuses 
which  dishonored  their  sacramental  supper  and  love-feasts. 
In  opposition  to  the  vain  songs  which,  in  such  excesses, 
they  were  disposed  to  sing,  they  are  urged  to  the  sober, 
religious  use  of  psalms  and  hymns  and  spiritual  songs. 

The  phraseology,  therefore,  indicates  that  they  were  not 
restricted  to  the  use  of  the  psalms  of  David  merely,  as  in 
the  Jewish  worship  ;  but  were  at  liberty  to  employ  others  of 

4  Com.  Manter,  Metrisch.  Uebersetz.  der  Offenbar.  Johann.  Vorrede, 
p.  17. 

^  Neanders  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  450,  3d  ed. 

6  All  this  is  shown  at  length  by  J.  G.  Walch,  De  Hymnis  Ecclesiae 
Apostolicae. 


364  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

appropriate  religious  character  in  tlieir  devotions.  It  seems 
also  that  the  Corinthians  were  accustomed  to  make  use  of 
songs  composed  for  the  occasion.  1  Cor.  14:  26.  And 
though  the  apostle  had  reason  to  correct  their  disorderly- 
proceedings,  it  does  not  appear  that  he  forbade  the  use  of 
such  songs.  On  the  contrary,  there  is  the  highest  proba- 
bility that  the  apostolical  churches  did  not  restrict  them- 
selves simply  to  the  use  of  the  Jewish  Psalter.  And  the 
evidence  is  sufficiently  clear,  that  the  primitive  churches 
very  early  employed,  in  their  devotions,  not  merely  the 
psalms,  appropriately  so  called,  but  hymns  and  spiritual 
songs  indited  for  the  worship  of  the  Christian  church. 

Grotius  and  others  have  supposed  that  some  fragments  of 
these  early  hymns  are  contained,  not  only  as  abovemention- 
ed,  in  Acts,  but  perhaps,  also,  in  1  Tim.  3:  16.  Something 
like  poetic  antithesis  they  have  imagined  to  be  contained  in 
1  Tim.  1:  1.  2  Tim.  2:  11—13.  The  expression  in  Rev- 
elation, "I  am  Alpha  and  Omega;  the  first  and  the  last," 
has  been  ascribed  to  the  same  origin,  as  has  also  Rev.  4:  8, 
together  with  the  song  of  Moses  and  the  Lamb,  ]5:  3,  and 
the  songs  of  the  elders  and  the  beasts.  Rev.  5:  9 — 14. 
Certain  parts  of  the  book  itself  have  been  supposed  to  be 
strictly  poetical,  and  may  have  been  used  as  such  in  Chris- 
tian worship,  such  as  Rev.  1:  4 — 8.  11:  15 — 19.  15:  3,4. 
21:  1 — 8.  22:  10—18.  But  the  argument  is  not  conclu- 
sive; and  all  the  learned  criticism,  the  talent,  and  the  taste 
that  have  been  employed  on  this  point,  leave  us  little  else 
than  uncertain  conjecture  on  which  to  build  an  hypothesis. 

4.  From  history. 

The  earliest  authentic  record  on  this  subject  is  the 
celebrated  letter  from  Pliny  to  Trajan,  just  at  the  close  of 
the  apostolical  age,  A.  D.  103,  104.  In  the  investigations 
which  he  instituted  against  the  Christians  of  his  period,  he 
discovered,  among  other  things,  that  they  were  accustomed 
to  meet  before  day,  to  offer  praise  to  Christ  as  God,  or  as 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  365 

a  God,  as  some  contend  that  it  should  be  rendered.'^'  The 
expression  is  somewhat  equivocal,  and  might  be  used  with 
reference  to  the  ascription  of  praise  in  prayer,  or  in  song. 
But  it  appears  that  these  Christians  rehearsed  their  carmen 
invicem,  alternately^  as  if  in  responsive  songs,  accordinn-  to 
the  ancient  custom  of  singing  in  the  Jewish  worship. 
Tertullian,  only  a  century  later,  evidently  understood  the 
passage  to  be  descriptive  of  this  mode  of  worshipping  God 
and  Christ,  who  says  that  Pliny  intended  to  express  nothing 
else  than  assemblies  before  the  dawn  of  the  morning,  to 
sing  praise  to  Christ  and  to  God,  coetus  antelucanos,  ad 
canendum  Christo  et  Deo.^  Eusebius  also  gives  the 
passage  a  similar  interpretation,  saying,  that  Pliny  could 
find  nothing  against  them,  save  that,  arising  at  the  dawn 
of  the  morning,  they  sang  hymns  to  Christ  as  God,  niiiv 
TO  ys  ufj,a  xf^  ew  dieysiQOfxei'Ovg  ibv  Xfjigbv  Qsov  dly.i]v  {/fiielv.^ 
Viewed  in  this  light,  according  to  the  most  approved  inter- 
pretation of  the  passage,  it  becomes  evidence  of  the  use  of 
Christian  psalmody  among  the  Christians  immediately 
subsequent  to  the  age  of  the  apostles. i*^  Tertullian  himself 
also  distinctly  testifies  to  the  use  of  songs  to  the  praise  of 
God  by  the  primitive  Christians.  Every  one,  he  says,  was 
invited  in  their  public  worship  to  sing  unto  God,  according 
to  his  ability,  from  the  Scriptures,  or  de  prop7'io  ingenio^ 
one  indited  by  himself,  according  to  the  interpretation  of 
Miinter.  But  whatever  be  the  meaning  of  this  phrase,  the 
passage  clearly  asserts  the  use  of  Christian  psalmody  in 
their  religious  worship.  Again,  he  speaks  of  singing,  in 
connection  with  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  exhortations, 
and  prayer  in  public  worship. ii  Eusebius  also  speaks  of 
singing  in  a  similar  manner.^^ 

7  Carmen  Christo  quasi  Deo  dicere  secum  invicem. — Epist.,  Lib.  10,  97. 

8  Apolog.,  c.  2.  9  Eccl.  Hist.,  3,  32. 

10  Manter,  Metrisch.  Offenbar.,  p.  25. 

11  De  Anima,  c.  9.  12  Vit.  Const.,  Lib.  4,  c.  45. 

31^ 


366  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Justin  Martyr  also  mentions  the  songs  and  hymns  of  the 
Ephesian  Christians.  "We  manifest  our  gratitude  to  him 
by  worshipping  him  in  spiritual  songs  and  hymns,  praising 
him  for  our  birth,  for  our  health,  for  the  vicissitudes  of  the 
seasons,  and  for  the  hopes  of  immortality."  13 

The  testimony  of  Origen,  t  A.  D.  254,  again,  of  the 
church  of  Alexandria,  is  to  the  same  effect.  In  answer  to 
the  charge  of  Celsus,  that  the  Christians  worshipped  the 
great  God,  and  sung  hymns  also  to  the  sun  and  to  Minerva, 
he  says,  we  know  the  contrary,  for  these  hymns  are  to  him 
who  alone  is  called  God  over  all,  and  to  his  only  begotten 
[Son],  viivovg  y^Q  sXg  ^tovov  rov  ^nl  naui  Xsyofisvov  Oebv,  xal 
rbv  fidvoysvri  a^TOu.^'* 

Eusebius  also  has  left  on  record  the  important  testimony 
of  Caius,  as  is  generally  supposed,  an  ancient  historian, 
and  contemporary  of  Tertullian.  "  Who  knows  not  the 
writings  of  Irenaeus,  Melito,  and  others,  which  exhibit 
Christ  as  God  and  man  ?  And  how  many  songs  and  odes 
of  the  brethren  there  are,  written  from  the  beginning,  jam 
pridem,  a  long  time  since,  by  believers,  which  offer  praise 
to  Christ  as  the  Word  of  God,  ascribing  divinity  to  him."  i^ 
This  passage  not  only  presents  a  new  and  independent 
testimony  to  the  use  of  spiritual  songs  in  the  Christian 
church,  from  the  remotest  antiquity,  an  ^qx^?,  to  the  praise 
of  Christ  as  divine,  but  it  shows  that  these,  in  great 
numbers,  had  been  committed  to  writing,  as  it  appears,  for 
continued  use.  So  that  we  here  have  evidence  of  the 
existence  of  a  Christian  hymn-book  from  the  beginning. 

Christ,  the  only-begotten  of  the  Father,  is  the  burden  of 
these  primitive  songs  and  hymns.  Here  is  he  set  forth 
doctrinally,  deoloyixog,  as  the  incarnate  Word  of  Gody  as 

13  Apol.,  c.  13. 

14  Against  Celsum,  Lib.  8,  c.  67,  p.  792,  ed.  Ruaei. 

^^  Tlauluol  ds  oaov  ycxl  (odai  (xdekcpCop  anuQx^?  ^^o  TrtorSy 
ygacpslaatyTov  Xdyov  xov  Oeov  ibv  Xgigov  vfivovau  deoloyovvTsg. 
—Eccl.  Hist,  5,  28. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  367 

God  and  man.  In  his  mediatorial  character  he  employed 
the  songs  of  these  apostolical  and  primitive  saints.  This 
sacred  theme  inspired  the  earliest  anthems  of  the  Christian 
church;  and,  as  it  has  ever  been  the  subject  of  her  sweetest 
melodies  and  loftiest  strains,  so,  doubtless,  will  it  continue 
to  be,  until  the  last  of  her  ransomed  sons  shall  end  the 
songs  of  the  redeemed  on  earth,  and  awake  his  harp  to 
nobler,  sweeter  strains  in  heaven. i^ 

One  ancient  hymn  of  the  primitive  church  appears  to 
have  come  down  to  us  entire,  from  that  distant  period.  It 
is  found,  indeed,  in  the  Paedagoge  of  Clement  of  Alexan- 
dria, a  work  bearing  date  some  hundred  and  fifty  years 
from  the  time  of  the  apostles;  but  it  is  ascribed  to  another, 
and  assigned  to  an  earlier  origin.  It  is  wanting  in  some 
of  the  manuscripts  of  Clement.  It  contains  figurative 
language  and  forms  of  expression  which  were  familiar  to 
the  church  at  an  earlier  date ;  and,  for  various  reasons,  is 
regarded  by  Miinter  and  Bull,!'''  as  a  venerable  relic  of  the 
early  church,  which  has  escaped  the  ravages  of  time,  and 
remains  a  solitary  remnant  of  Christian  psalmody  of  that 
early  age.  However  this  may  be,  it  is  certainly  very 
ancient,  and  the  earliest  that  remains  to  us  from  the 
psalmody  of  the  church.  It  is  a  hymn  to  Christ;  and, 
though  regarded  merely  as  a  poetical  production  it  has 
little  claim  to  consideration,  it  shows  what  was  the  strain 
of  their  devotions.  We  see  in  it  the  heart  of  primitive 
piety  laboring  to  give  utterance  to  its  emotions  of  wonder, 

16  Whatever  may  be  the  doctrinal  truth  in  regard  to  the  character  of 
Christ,  it  is  abundantly  evident,  that  he  was  worshipped  as  divine  in  the 
prayers  and  psalmody  of  the  primitive  church.  See  our  Christian  Antiqui- 
ties, pp.  203 — 206.  This  truth,  again,  is  confirmed  by  the  fact  mentioned 
by  Neander,  that, ''  In  the  controversy  with  the  Unitarians,  at  the  close  of 
the  second  and  beginning  of  the  third  century,  their  opponents  appealed 
to  those  hymns  in  which,  aforetime,  Christ  had  been  worshipped  as  God." 
—Allgem.  Kirch.  Hist.,  1,  523,  2d  ed. 

17  Metrisch.  Offenbar.,  p.  32.  Bull's  Defensio  fidei  Nicaenae,  $  111,  c.  2, 
p.  316,  cited  by  MOnter. 


368  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

love  and  gratitude,  in  view  of  the  offices  and  character  of 
the  great  Redeemer.i^  It  is  not  found  in  the  later  collects 
of  the  church,  because,  as  is  supposed,  it  was  thought  to 
resemble,  in  its  measure  and  antiphonal  structure,  the  songs 
which  were  used  in  pagan  worship. 

The  songs  of  the  primitive  Christians  were  not  restricted 
to  their  public  devotions.  In  their  social  circles,  and 
around  their  domestic  altars,  they  worshipped  God  in  the 
sacred  song ;  and,  in  their  daily  occupations,  were  wont  to 
relieve  their  toil  and  refresh  their  spirits,  by  renewing  their 
favorite  songs  of  Zion.  Persecuted  and  afflicted  as  they 
often  were, — in  solitary  cells  of  the  prison,  in  the  more 
dismal  abodes  of  the  mines  to  which  they  were  doomed,  or 
as  wandering  exiles  in  foreign  countries, — still  they  forgot 
not  to  sing  the  Lord's  song  in  the  strange  lands  to  which 
they  were  driven. ^^ 

II.     Mode  of  singing  in  the  ancient  church. 

Both  the  Jews  in  their  temple  service,  and  the  Greeks 
in  their  idol  worship,  were  accustomed  to  sing  with  the 
accompaniment  of  instrumental  music.  The  converts  to 
Christianity  accordingly  must  have  been  familiar  with  this 
mode  of  singing.  The  word,  ipaalUw,  which  the  apostle 
uses  in  Eph.  5:  19,  is  supposed  by  critics  to  indicate  that 
they  sang  with  such  accompaniments.  The  same  is  sup- 
posed by  some  to  be  intimated  by  the  golden  harps  which 
John,  in  the  Apocalypse,  put  into  the  hands  of  the  four- 
and-twenty  elders.     But  it  is  generally  admitted,  that  the 

18  The  reader  will  find  this  hymn  in  our  Christian  Antiquities^  pp.  226, 
227.  It  is  an  anapaestic  ode,  with  occasional  interchanges  of  spondees  and 
dactyls,  which  this  measure  admits.  It  is  supposed  also  to  consist  of  parts 
which  may  have  been  sung  in  responses.  The  divisions  are  as  follows, — 
lines,  1—10,  11—28,  29--15,  46—63. 

19  Comp.  Jamieson,  cited  in  Christian  Antiquities,  p.  375.  It  would  not 
be  difficult  to  adduce  original  authorities  to  this  effect,  but  we  must  con- 
fine ourselves  more  particularly  to  the  devotional  psalmody  of  their  public 
worship. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  369 

primitive  Christians  employed  no  instrumental  music  in 
their  religious  worship.  Neither  Ambrose,  nor  Basil,  nor 
Chrysostom,20  in  the  noble  encomiums  which  they  severally 
pronounce  upon  music,  make  any  mention  of  instrumental 
music.  Basil  condemns  it  as  ministering  only  to  the  de- 
praved passions  of  men.^i 

It  seems  from  the  epistle  of  Pliny,  that  the  Christians 
of  whom  he  speaks,  sang  alternately,  in  responses.  The 
ancient  hymn  from  Clement  abovementioned,  seems  to  be 
constructed  with  reference  to  this  method  of  singing. 
There  is,  also,  an  ancient,  but  groundless  tradition  extant 
in  Socrates,22  that  Ignatius  was  the  first  to  introduce  this 
style  of  music  in  the  church  at  Antioch.  It  was  familiar 
to  the  Jews,  who  often  sang  responsively  in  the  worship  of 
the  temple.  In  some  instances,  the  same  style  of  singing 
may  have  been  practised  in  the  primitive  church.  But 
responsive  singing  is  generally  allowed  not  to  have  been 
in  common  use  in  the  first  three  hundred  years  of  the 
Christian  era.  This  mode  of  singing  was  common  in  the 
theatres  and  temples  of  the  Gentiles,  and  for  this  reason  was 
generally  discarded  by  the  primitive  Christians.^s  It  was, 
at  first,  practised  in  the  Syrian  churches;  it  was  introduced 
into  the  Eastern  churches  by  Flavian  and  Diodorus,  in  the 
middle  of  the  fourth  century  ;24  from  them  it  was  trans- 
ferred by  Ambrose,  A.  D.  370,  to  those  of  the  West,  and 
soon  came  into  general  use  in  these  churches,  under  the 
name  of  the  Ambrosian  style  of  music.^^ 

20  Ambrose,  in  Ps.  1,  Praef.,  p.  740.  Basil,  in  Ps.  1,  Vol.  II,  p.  713. 
Chrysostom,  in  Ps,  41,  Vol.  V,  p.  131. 

21  Horn.  4,  Vol.  I,  p.  33.  22  EccI.  Hist.,  Lib.  6,  c.  8. 

23  Theodoras  Mopsues.,  quoted  by  Nicetas  Momin.  Thesaur.  orthodox, 
Lib.  5,  c.  30,  in  Biblioth.Vet.  Pat.  XXV,p.  l61.—Augusti,Denkwnrdigkeiien, 
5,  278.  24  Theodoret,  Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib.  2,  c.  19,  p.  622. 

25  August,  Confess.,  9,  c.  7.  Paulini,  Vet.  Ambros.,  p.  4.  Comp.  Augusti, 
Denkwurdig.,  5,  p.  300. 


370  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

Sacred  music  must,  at  this  time,  have  consisted  only  of  a 
few  simple  airs  which  could  be  easily  learned,  and  which, 
by  frequent  repetition,  became  familiar  to  all.  An  orna- 
mental and  complicated  style  of  music  would  have  been 
alike  incompatible  with  the  circumstances  of  these  Christian 
worshippers,  and  uncongenial  with  the  simplicity  of  their 
primitive  forms.^^ 

In  their  songs  of  Zion,  both  old  and  young,  men  and 
women,  bore  a  part.  Their  psalmody  was  the  joint  act  of 
the  whole  assembly  in  unison.  Such  is  the  testimony  of 
Hilary,  A.  D.  355,  the  author  of  the  first  hymn-book,  who 
represents  the  people  as  actually  praying  and  singing 
together. 27  Ambrose  remarks,  that  the  injunction  of  the 
apostle,  forbidding  women  to  speak  in  public,  relates  not  to 
singing,  "  for  this  is  delightful  in  every  age,  and  suited  to 
every  sex.  "28  The  authority  of  Chrysostom  is  also  to  the 
same  effect.  "It  was  the  ancient  custom,  as  it  still  is  with 
us,  for  all  to  come  together,  and  unitedly  to  join  in  sing- 
ing. The  young  and  the  old,  rich  and  poor,  male  and 
female,  bond  and  free,  all  join  in  one  song  .  .  .  All  worldly 
distinctions  here  cease,  and  the  whole  congregation  form 
one  general  chorus. "29 

This  interesting  part  of  their  religious  worship  was  con- 
ducted in  the  same  simplicity  which  characterised  all  their 
proceedings.  All  unitedly  sung  their  familiar  psalms  and 
hymns,  and  each  was  invited,  at  pleasure,  and  according  to 
his  ability,  to  lead  their  devotions  in  a  sacred  song  indited 
by  himself.  Such,  evidently,  was  the  custom  in  the  Co- 
rinthian church.  Such  was  still  the  custom  in  the  age  of 
TertuIIian,   to  which   reference  has   already  been  made. 

26  Augusti,  DenkwOrdigkeiten^  5,  p.  288. 

27  Comment,  in  Ps.  65,  p.  174. 

28  In  Ps.  1,  praef.,  741.     Comp.  Hexaemeron,  Lib.  3,  c.  5,  p.  42. 

89  Hom.  11,  Vol.  XII,  p.  349.  Hom.  36  in  1  Cor.,  Vol.  X,  p.  340. 
Comp.  Gerbert,  Musica  Sacra,  Lib.  1,  §  11,  who  has  collected  many  other 
authorities  to  the  same  effect. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  371 

Augustine  also  refers  to  the  same  usage,  and  ascribes  the 
talent  which  they  manifested  in  this  extemporaneous 
psalmody  to  divine  inspiration. ^^^ 

Such,  so  far  as  we  are  informed,  was  the  psalmody  of 
the  early  church.  It  consisted  in  part  of  the  psalms  of 
David,  and  in  part  of  hymns  composed  for  the  purpose, 
and  expressive  of  love  and  praise  to  God  and  to  Christ.^i 
Few  in  number,  and  sung  in  rude  and  simple  airs,  they 
yet  had  wonderful  power  over  these  primitive  saints.  The 
sacred  song  inspired  their  devotions  both  in  the  public  and 
private  worship  of  God.  At  their  family  board  it  quickened 
their  gratitude  to  God,  who  gave  them  their  daily  bread. 
It  enlivened  their  domestic  and  social  intercourse ;  it  re- 
lieved the  weariness  of  their  daily  labor ;  it  cheered  them 
in  solitude,  comforted  them  in  affliction,  and  supported 
them  under  persecution.  "  Go  where  you  will,"  says 
Jerome,  "  the  ploughman  at  his  plough  sings  his  joyful 
hallelujahs,  the  busy  mower  regales  himself  with  his  psalms, 
and  the  vine-dresser  is  singing  one  of  the  songs  of  David. 
Such  are  our  songs  —  our  love  songs,  as  they  are  called  — 
the  solace  of  the  shepherd  in  his  solitude,  and  of  the  hus- 
bandman in  his  toil. "32  Fearless  of  reproach,  of  perse- 
cution, and  of  death,  they  continued,  in  the  face  of  their 
enemies,  to  sing  their  sacred  songs  in  the  streets  and 
market-places,  and  at  the  martyr's  stake.  Eusebius  de- 
clares himself  an  eye-witness  to  the  fact,  that  under 
their  persecutions  in  Thebais,  "  they  continued  to  their 
latest  breath  to  sing  psalms,  and  hymns,  and  thanks- 
givings to  the  God  of  heaven. "33  And  the  same  is  re- 
lated of  many  others  of  the  early  martyrs.  We  are 
informed  by  Chrysostom,  that  it  was  an  ancient  custom 

30  Cited  by  Monter,  Metrisch.  Offenbar.    The  sentiments  of  Grotius  also 
are  to  the  same  effect. 

31  Neander,  AUgem.  Kirch.  Hist,  1,  p.  523,  2d  ed. 

32  Ep.  17,  ad  Marcellam.    Cited  in  Arnold's  Abbildung,  p.  174. 

33  Eccl.  Hist.,  8,  c.  9. 


372  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

to  sing  the  140th  psalm  every  evening,  and  that  these 
Christians  continued  through  life  the  constant  singing  of 
this  psalm. 34  The  song  of  Zion  was  a  sacred  fountain, 
which,  like  the  living  waters  of  a  desert,  sustained 
in  this  barren  wilderness,  the  growth  and  vigor  of  primi- 
tive piety,  and  overspread  v^^ith  perpetual  verdure  the 
vineyard  of  the  Lord.  On  this  point  the  sentiments  of 
Herder  are  peculiarly  interesting;  and  no  one  can  speak 
with  more  authority  respecting  the  psalmody  of  the  an- 
cient church.  Speaking  of  the  earliest  hymns  of  the 
Latin  church,  after  remarking  that  they  exhibit  little 
poetic  talent  or  classic  taste,  he  adds,  "But  who  can  deny 
their  influence  and  power  over  the  soul  ?  These  sacred 
hymns  of  many  hundred  years'  standing,  and  yet  at  every 
repetition  still  new  and  unimpaired  in  interest — what  a 
blessing  have  they  been  to  poor  human  nature !  They  go 
with  the  solitary  into  his  cell,  and  attend  the  afflicted  in 
distress,  in  want,  and  to  the  grave.  While  singing  these, 
one  forgets  his  toil,  and  his  fainting  sorrowful  spirit, 
soars  in  heavenly  joys  to  another  world.  Back  to  earth 
he  comes  to  labor,  to  toil,  to  suffer  in  silence  and  to  conquer. 
How  rich  the  boon,  how  great  the  power  of  these  hymns. "35 
He  proceeds  to  say,  that  here  is  an  efficacy  and  power 
which  lighter  songs,  which  philosophy  itself,  can  never 
have  ;  a  power  which  is  not  ascribable  to  any  thing  new 
or  striking  in  sentiment,  or  powerful  in  expression.  And 
then  raises  the  question,  Whence  then  have  they  this 
mighty  power?  "What  is  it  that  so  moves  us?"  To 
which   he    replies,    ^^ simplicity   and   truth.      Embodying 

34  Chrysost.  in  Ps.  140,  Tom.  5,  p.  427. 

35  Augustine  gives  the  following  account  of  the  power  of  this  music 
over  him  on  the  occasion  of  his  baptism.  "  Oh  how  freely  was  I  made  to 
weep  by  these  hymns  and  spiritual  songs  5  transported  by  the  voices  of 
the  congregation  sweetly  singing.  The  melody  of  their  voices  filled  my 
ear,  and  divine  truth  was  poured  into  my  heart.  Then  burned  the  sacred 
flame  of  devotion  in  my  soul,  and  gushing  tears  flowed  from  my  eyes  as  well 
they  might." — Confess.,  Lib.  9,  c.  9,  p.  118. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  373 

the  great  and  simple  truths  of  religion,  they  speak  the 
sentiment  of  an  universal  creed — they  are  the  expression 
of  one  heart  and  one  faith.  The  greater  part  are  suitable 
to  be  sung  on  all  occasions,  and  daily  to  be  repeated. 
Others  are  adapted  to  certain  festivals  ;  and,  as  these  re- 
turn in  endless  succession,  so  the  sacred  song  perpetually 
repeats  the  Christian  faith.  Though  rude,  and  void  of 
refined  taste,  they  all  speak  to  the  heart,  and  by  ceaseless 
repetition  sink  deep  the  impress  of  truth.  Like  these,  the 
sacred  song  should  ever  be  the  simple  oflfering  of  nature, 
an  incense  of  sweet  odors,  perpetually  recurring,  with  a 
fragrance  that  suffers  no  abatement. "^6  Such  is  the  sim- 
ple power  of  truth  wrought  into  the  soul  by  the  hallowed 
devotions  of  the  sanctuary.  Striking  the  deepest  princi- 
ples of  our  nature,  stirring  the  strongest  passions  of  the 
heart,  and  mingling  with  our  most  tender  recollections  and 
dearest  hopes,  is  it  strange  that  the  simple  truths  and  rude 
air  of  the  sacred  song  should  deeply  move  us  ?  So  pre- 
sented, they  only  grow  in  interest  by  continued  repetition. 
And  in  the  lapse  of  years,  these  time-hallowed  associations 
do  but  sink  the  deeper  in  the  soul. 

"  Time  but  the  impression  stronger  makes, 
As  streams  their  channels  deeper  wear." 

III.     Changes  in  the  psalmody  of  the  church. 

In  the  course  of  a  few  centuries  from  the  fourth  on- 
ward, several  variations  were  introduced  in  the  mode  of 
performing  this  part  of  public  worship,  the  effect  of  which 
was  to  withdraw  the  people  from  any  direct  participation 
in  it,  and  to  destroy  in  a  great  degree  its  moral  power. 

1.  The  first  of  these  changes  has  been  already 
mentioned,  singing  alternately  by  responses.     This  was 

36  Briefe  zur  BefOrderung  der  humanitat,,  7,  Samml.,  p.  28,  seq.  Cited 
by  Augusti,  Denkwurdigkeiten,  5,  p.  296,  297. 

32 


374  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

introduced  into  the  Syriac  churches,  afterwards  in  the 
Eastern  church,  and  finally,  into  the  Western,  by  Ambrose. 
In  this  the  congregation  still  bore  some  part,  all  uniting 
in  the  chorus,  and  singing  the  responses. 

2.  The  appointment  of  singers  as  a  distinct  class  of 
officers  in  the  church,  for  the  performance  of  this  part  of 
religious  worship  marks  another  alteration  in  the  psalmody 
of  the  church.  These  were  first  appointed  in  the  fourth 
century.  But  the  people  continued,  for  a  century  or  more, 
to  enjoy  their  ancient  privilege  of  singing  all  together. 

3.  Various  restrictions  were  from  time  to  time  laid  upon 
the  use  of  hymns  of  human  composition,  in  distinction 
from  the  inspired  psalms  of  David.  Heretics  of  every 
name  had  their  sacred  hymns,  suited  to  their  own  religious 
belief,  which  had  great  effect  in  propagating  their  errors. 
To  resist  their  encroachments,  the  established  church  were 
driven  to  the  necessity,  either  of  cultivating  and  improving 
their  own  psalmody,  or  of  opposing  its  authority  to  stay 
the  progress  of  this  evil.  The  former  was  the  expedient 
of  Ambrose,  Hilary,  Gregory  Nazianzen,  Chrysostom,  and 
Augustine,  &c. 

But  the  other  alternative  in  turn  was  also  attempted  ; 
and  the  churches  by  ecclesiastical  authority  were  restricted 
to  the  use  of  the  psalter  and  other  canonical  songs  of  the 
Scriptures.  All  hymns  of  merely  human  composition 
were  prohibited,  as  of  a  dangerous  tendency  and  unsuitable 
to  the  purposes  of  public  worship.  The  synod  of  Laodicea, 
A.  D.  344 — 346,  c.  59,  passed  a  decree  to  that  efl^ect. 
The  decree  was  not,  however,  fully  enforced.  But  this, 
and  similar  eflforts  on  the  part  of  the  clergy,  had  the  effect 
to  discontinue  the  use  of  such  religious  songs.  The 
Arians  of  that  age  also  opposed  these  ancient  sacred 
hymns,  for  a  different  reason,  and  cultivated  a  higher  style 
of  sacred  music. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  375 

4.  The  introduction  of  instrumental  music.  The  ten- 
dency of  this  was  to  secularize  the  music  of  the  church, 
and  to  encourage  singing  by  a  choir.  Such  musical  ac- 
companiments were  gradually  introduced;  but  they  can 
hardly  be  assigned  to  a  period  earlier  than  the  fifth  and 
sixth  centuries.  Organs  were  unknown  in  church  until 
the  eighth  or  ninth  century.  Previous  to  this  they  had 
their  place  in  the  theatre,  rather  than  in  the  church.  They 
were  never  regarded  with  favor  in  the  Eastern  church, 
and  were  vehemently  opposed  in  many  places  in  the  West. 
In  Scotland  no  organ  is  allowed,  to  this  day,  except  in  a 
few  Episcopal  churches.  "  In  the  English  convocation, 
held  A.  D.  1562,  in  queen  Elizabeth's  time,  for  settling  of 
the  liturgy,  the  retaining  of  organs  was  carried  only  by  a 
casting  votey 

5.  The  introduction  of  profane,  secular  music  into  the 
church,  was  one  of  the  principal  means  of  corrupting  the 
psalmody  of  the  church.  An  artificial,  theatrical  style  of 
music,  having  no  affinity  with  the  worship  of  God,  began 
to  take  the  place  of  those  solemn  airs  which  before  had 
inspired  the  devotions  of  his  people.  The  music  of  the 
theatre  was  transferred  to  the  church,  which  accordingly 
became  the  scene  of  theatrical  pomp  and  display,  rather 
than  the  house  of  prayer  and  of  praise,  to  inspire  by  its 
appropriate  and  solemn  rites  the  spiritual  worship  of  God. 
The  consequences  of  indulging  this  depraved  taste  for 
secular  music  in  the  church  are  exhibited  by  Neander  in 
the  following  extract.  "  We  have  it  to  regret,  that  both 
in  the  Eastern  and  the  Western  church,  their  sacred 
music  had  already  assumed  an  artificial  and  theatrical 
character,  and  was  so  far  removed  from  its  original  sim- 
plicity, that  even  in  the  fourth  century,  the  abbot  Pambo 
of  Egypt  complained  that  heathen  melodies  [accompanied 
as  it  seems,  with  the  action  of  the  hands  and  the  feet]  had 


376  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

been  introduced  into  their  church  psalmody. ^^  Isidorus, 
of  Pelusium,  also  complained  of  the  theatrical  singing", 
especially  of  the  women,  which,  instead  of  inducing  peni- 
tence for  sin,  tended  much  more  to  awaken  sinful  desires.^s 
Jerome,  also,  in  remarking  upon  Eph.  5 :  19,  says,  "  May 
all  hear  it  whose  business  it  is  to  sing  in  the  church.  Not 
with  the  voice,  but  with  the  heart,  we  sing  praises  to  God. 
Not  like  the  comedians  should  they  raise  their  sweet  and 
liquid  notes  to  entertain  the  assembly  with  theatrical  songs 
and  melodies  in  the  church  ;  but  the  fear  of  God,  piety,  and 
the  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures,  should  inspire  our  songs. 
Then  would  not  the  voice  of  the  singers,  but  the  utterance 
of  the  divine  word,  expel  the  evil  spirit  from  those  who  like 
Saul  are  possessed  with  it.  But,  instead  of  this,  this  same 
spirit  is  invited  rather  to  the  possession  of  those  who  have 
converted  the  house  of  God  into  a  pagan  theatre. "^^ 

The  assembly  continued  to  bear  some  part  in  the  psalmody 
of  the  church,  even  after  this  had  become  a  cultivated 
theatrical  art,  for  the  practice  of  which,  the  singers  were 
appointed,  and  trained  as  a  distinct  order  in  the  church. 
The  congregation  may  have  continued  for  a  time  to  join 
in  a  chorus  or  a  response.  But  is  it  conceivable  that  a 
promiscuous  assembly  could  unite  in  such  theatrical  music 
as  is  here  the  subject  of  complaint?  Was  not  this  style 
of  music  simply  an  art,  requiring  skill  altogether  beyond  the 
rude  simplicity  which  that  sacred  music  must  of  necessity 
have  in  which  all  bear  a  part  ? 

6.  The  practice  of  sacred  music,  as  an  ornamental, 
cultivated  art,  took  it  yet  more  from  the  people.  It  be- 
came an  art  which  only  a  few  could  learn.     The  many, 

^^  Mel(o8ovaav  da/uaTa  yal  Qvd/^i'Qovaiv  i]xovg  aeiGOvai  ^Eig- 

XSiQag  xal  ftsra^uirovcn  (^^allovail)    nodag Scriptores  Eccle- 

siastici,  De  Musica,  T.  1,  1784,  p.  3 

38  Isidor.  Pelus.,  C.  I,  Ep.  90,  Biblioth.  Vet.  Pat.,  Vol.  VII,  p.  643. 

39  Comment,  in  Ep.  Eph.,  Lib.  3,  c.  5,  T.  4,  p.  387,  ed.  Martianay. 
Cited  in  Allgem.  Kirch.  Gesch.,  2,  p.  681,  2d.  ed. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  377 

instead  of  uniting  their  heart  and  their  voice  in  the  song 
of  Zion,  could  only  sit  coldly  by  as  spectators.  A  pro- 
miscuous assembly,  very  obviously,  could  not  be  expected 
to  bear  a  prominent  part  in  such  theatrical  music  as  is  here 
the  subject  of  consideration.  They  might,  indeed,  unite  in 
some  simple  chorus,  and  are  generally  understood  not  to 
have  been  entirely  excluded  from  all  participation  in  the 
psalmody  of  the  church  until  the  sixth  or  seventh  century. 
Gregory  the  Great  was  instrumental  in  bringing  singing 
schools  into  repute,  and  after  him  Charlemagne.  Organs 
came  about  this  time  into  use.  But  in  the  early  periods 
of  the  Christian  church,  instrumental  music  v^as  not  in  use 
in  religious  worship. 

7.  The  clergy  eventually  claimed  the  right  of  perform^ 
ing  the  sacred  music  as  a  privilege  exclusively  their  own. 
This  expedient  shut  out  the  people  from  any  participation 
in  this  delightful  part  of  public  worship. 

Finally,  the  more  effectually  to  exclude  the  people, 
the  singing  was  in  Latin.  Where  this  was  not  the  ver- 
nacular tongue,  this  rule  of  necessity  was  an  effectual  bar 
to  the  participation  of  the  people  in  this  part  of  public 
worship.  Besides,  the  doctri  ne  was  industriously  propagated 
that  it  was  the  appropriate  language  of  devotion,  which  be- 
came not  the  profane  lips  of  the  laity,  in  these  religious 
solemnities,  but  of  the  clergy  rather,  who  had  been  con- 
secrated to  the  service  of  the  sanctuary.  The  Eeformation 
again  restored  to  the  people  this  ancient  and  inestimable 
right.  But  in  the  Eoman  Catholic  church,  it  is  still 
divided  between  the  chants  of  the  priests  and  the  theatrical 
performances  of  the  choir,  which  effectually  pervert  the 
devotional  ends  of  sacred  music. 
32=^ 


378 


THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 


REMARKS. 


1.  To  accomplish,  in  the  happiest  manner,  the  devotional 
ends  of  sacred  music,  the  congregation  should  unitedly 
join  in  it. 

In  advancing  an  opinion  so  much  opposed  to  the  taste 
of  the  age,  the  writer  has  no  expectation  that  it  will  be 
received  with  the  consideration  which,  in  his  opinion,  its 
importance  demands.  For  he  cannot  resist  the  conviction, 
that  in  separating  the  congregation  generally  from  a  par- 
ticipation in  this  delightful  part  of  public  worship,  we  have 
taken  the  most  effectual  measure,  as  did  the  Catholic 
clergy  in  the  period  which  has  passed  under  review,  to 
destroy  the  devotional  influence  of  sacred  music.  What, 
may  we  ask,  was  the  secret  of  that  magic  charm  of  sacred 
music,  in  the  early  Christian  church  ?  Whence  its  mighty 
influence  over  those  primitive  saints  ?  It  was,  that  the 
great  truths  of  religion  were  embodied  in  their  psalmody, 
and  set  to  such  simple  airs  that  all  could  unitedly  blend 
their  voices  and  their  hearts  in  the  sacred  song;  and 
though  they  may  have  exhibited  little  of  what  is  now  de- 
nominated musical  taste,  or  of  the  symphonies  of  a  modern 
oratorio,  they  offered  unto  God  the  melody  of  the  heart,  by 
far  the  noblest  praise.  Their  sacred  songs  became,  as  we 
have  seen,  the  ballads  of  the  people,'*^  sung  at  all  times,  and 
upon  every  occasion.  Religious  truth  became  inwrought 
into  the  very  soul  of  these  Christians  by  their  sacred  songs. 
It  entered,  not  only  into  their  public  devotions,  but  into  their 
family  worship,  their  domestic  pleasures,  and  their  social 
entertainments.  Thus  religious  truth  addressed  itself  to 
the  heart  of  the  people  in  a  manner  the  most  persuasive 
possible,  and  became  associated,  both  with  the  most  en- 

40  One  has  wisely  said,  "  Let  me  make  the  ballads  of  the  people,  and  I 
care  not  who  makes  their  laws."  But  connected  with  religion  their  power 
is  immensely  increased. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  379 

dearing  recollections  of  the  heart,  and  its  most  hallowed 
associations.  AVill  the  music  of  our  churches,  however 
skilfully  played  upon  the  organ,  or  sweetly  sung  by  a  few 
select  voices,  ever  so  move  the  heart,  and  mould  the  char- 
acter of  the  whole  society  ?  No ;  like  the  cold  corrusca- 
tions  of  the  Northern  lights,  it  does  but  amuse  and  delight 
the  spectator  for  a  while,  and  then  passes  away,  leaving 
the  bosom  dark  and  cheerless  as  before.  But  when  the 
music  of  the  church  is  let  down  from  the  orchestra  to  the 
congregation  below,  and  runs  with  its  quickening  influence, 
from  man  to  man,  until  all  feel  their  soul  ascending  in  the 
song,  which  they  unitedly  raise  to  God,  then  it  is  the 

"  Heart  grows  warm  with  holy  fire, 
And  kindles  with  a  pure  desire." 

No  one  can  witness  the  worship  of  the  churches  in 
Germany,  without  being  struck  with  the  devotional  influ- 
ence of  their  psalmody.  They  are  a  nation  of  singers. 
Rarely  is  one  seen  in  the  church,  whether  old  or  young, 
who  does  not  join  in  the  song;^i  and  with  an  evident  in- 

41  The  singing  is  the  most  devotional  part  of  the  religious  worship  of 
the  Lutheran  and  Evangelical  churches  of  Germany,  and  in  proportion  to 
other  parts  of  worship  is  extended  to  an  inordinate  length.  For  example, 
on  one  occasion  in  tlie  ordinary  services  of  the  Sabbath,  the  singing  be- 
fore sermon  was  observed,  by  the  writer,  to  occupy  fifty  minutes.  In  the 
course  of  this  time,  two  prayers  were  offered,  neither  of  which  occupied 
three  minutes  time,  and  two  portions  of  Scripture  were  read,  which  did 
not  occupy  more  than  five  minutes.  All  the  prayers,  including  the  litany, 
did  not  exceed  ten  minutes  in  length  3  whde  the  singing  employed  near  an 
hour.  The  prayers  are  liturgical  forms  to  a  great  extent,  briefly  rehearsed 
at  different  times  by  the  clergyman,  in  which  the  congregation  seem  not 
to  be  deeply  interested.  The  singing  is  the  act  of  the  congregation 
unitedly,  with  which  they  are  never  weary,  with  which,  I  had  almost  said, 
they  never  appear  to  be  satisfied.  And  yet  these  hymns  have  but  very 
humble  claims  to  consideration  for  the  poetic  taste  which  they  display. 
In  this  respect  they  would  by  no  means  equal  the  antiquated  collect  of 
Tate  and  Brady.  With  the  Divine  Songs  of  Watts,  and  more  lyric  poetry 
they  bear  no  comparison. 


380  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

terest  which  it  has  not  been  the  good  fortune  of  the  writer 
often  to  witness,  or  to  experience  in  the  churches  of 
America.  In  our  country  this  subject  is  encompassed 
with  intrinsic  difficulties  which  we  pass  without  remark. 
But  were  it  possible  ever  to  make  the  modification  under 
consideration  in  our  church-music,  even  at  the  expense  of 
the  musical  skill  and  the  talent  which  are  now  displayed, 
we  must  believe  that  much  would  be  gained  to  the  devo- 
tional influence  of  our  sacred  music.  What  though,  in 
humbler  strains,  and  more  simple  airs,  the  churches  raise  to 
God  their  sacred  songs  of  praise  ?  What  if  some  dis- 
cordant notes  occasionally  disturb  the  harmony  of  their 
voices  ?  if  still  they  do  but  fulfil  the  apostolical  injunction, 
singing  and  making  melody  in  their  hearts  to  the  Lord, 
the  noblest,  the  best,  the  only  end,  of  sacred  music  is 
accomplished.  Such  are  the  strains  which  he  who  em- 
ploys the  songs  of  heaven  delights  most  to  hear. 

"  Compared  with  these,  Italian  trills  are  tame  ; 
The  tickled  ears  no  heart-felt  raptures  raise." 

2.  Christian  psalmody  was  one  of  the  principal  means  of 
promoting  the  devotions  of  the  primitive  church. 

Enough  remains  on  record  in  relation  to  this  subject,  to 
show  what  interest  these  venerable  saints  and  martyrs  had 
in  their  sacred  songs.  Enough,  to  show  what  power  their 
psalmody  had  to  confirm  their  faith,  to  inspire  their  devo- 
tions, to  bring  them  nigh  to  God,  and  to  arm  them  with 
more  than  mortal  courage  for  the  fiery  conflict  to  which 
they  were  summoned  in  defence  of  their  faith.  Has  this 
most  interesting  and  important  part  of  religious  worship 
its  just  influence  with  us  ?  Is  its  quickening  power  shed 
abroad  over  our  assemblies,  like  the  spirit  of  heavenly 
grace,  warming  the  cold  heart  into  spiritual  life,  and  reviv- 
ing its  languid  affections,  as  if  with  a  fresh  anointing  from 
on  high  ? 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  381 

3.  Christian  psalmody  affords  the  happiest  means  of  en- 
forcing the  doctrinal  truths  of  religion. 

Reason  with  man,  and  you  do  but  address  his  under- 
standing; you  gain,  it  may  be,  his  cold  convictions. 
Embody  the  truth  in  a  creed,  or  confession  of  faith;  to  this 
he  also  yields  assent,  and  remains  as  unmoved  as  before. 
But  express  it  in  the  sacred  song.  Let  it  mingle  wiih  his 
devotions  in  the  sanctuary,  and  in  the  family ;  let  his  most 
endeared  associations  cluster  around  it,  as  the  central 
point,  not  only  of  his  faith,  but  of  his  hopes,  his  joys ;  and 
what  before  was  a  speculative  belief,  has  become  his  living 
sentiment, — the  governing  principle  both  of  the  under- 
standing and  the  heart.  The  single  book  of  psalms  and 
hymns,  therefore,  does  unspeakably  more  to  form  the  doc- 
trinal sentiments  of  men,  than  all  the  formularies,  creeds, 
and  confessions  of  polemics  and  divines.  "The  one,"  says 
Augusti,  "is  chiefly  for  the  minister;  the  other  is  in  the 
hands  of  the  people,  and  is,  as  you  may  say,  his  daily 
creeds  ^^  The  heart,  in  religion,  as  in  every  thing  else, 
governs  the  understanding.  The  sacred  song  that  wins 
the  one,  fails  not  also  to  convince  and  to  control  the  other. 
With  great  propriety,  therefore,  has  the  hymn-book  long 
been  styled,  the  Layman's  Bible^^ 

Every  religious  denomination,  accordingly,  has  its  hymn- 
book.  Every  heretical  sect,  in  ancient  times,  had  also 
theirs.  The  spiritual  songs  of  the  primitive  Christians 
were  almost  exclusively  of  a  doctrinal  character.  "  In 
fact,  almost  all  the  prayers,  doxologies,  and  hymns  of  the 

42  DenkwOrdigkeiten,  5,  p.  411. 

43  Augusti,  Denkwiirdigkeiten,  5,  p.  411 5  also,  277.  Augustin  recognizes 
the  same  sentiment,  as  follows : — Cum  reminiscor  lachrymas  meas  quas 
fudi  ad  cantus  ecclesiae  tuae  in  primordiis  recuperatae  fidei  meae,  et  nunc 
ipso  quod  moveor,  non  cantu,  sed  rebus  quae  cantantur,  cum  liquida  voce 
et  convenientissima  modulatione  cantantur^  magnam  instituti  hujiis  utilita- 
tem  versus  agnosco.  Tamen  cum  mihi  accidit  ut  me  amplius  cmitus  quam 
res  quae  canitur  moveat,  poenaliter  me  peccare  confiteor,  et  tunc  mallem 
non  audire  cantantem. — Confess.,  Lib.  10,  c.  33,  Vol.  I,  p.  141. 


382  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ancient  church  are  nothing  else  than  prayers  and  supplica- 
tions to  the  triune  God,  or  to  Jesus  Christ.  They  were 
generally  altogether  doctrinal.  The  prayers  and  psalms, 
of  merely  a  moral  character,  which  the  modern  church 
has  in  great  abundance,  in  the  ancient,  were  altogether 
unknown."  ^^  And  yet  the  modern  Christians  have  not 
been  inattentive  to  this  mode  of  defending  their  faith. 
Their  different  collections  of  psalms  and  hymns  abound 
with  those  that  are  expressive  merely  of  points  of  doctrine, 
at  the  expense,  often,  of  all  poetical  imagery  or  expression. ^^ 

4.  Christian  psalmody  is  one  of  the  most  efficient  means 
of  promulgating  a  religious  system  among  a  people. 

This  w^as  one  of  the  earliest  and  most  successful  expe- 
dients for  spreading  the  ancient  heresies  of  the  church. 
Bardasanes,  the  famous  Syrian  Gnostic,  in  the  latter  part 
of  the  second  century,  made  this  the  principal  means  of 
propagating  his  sentiments.  He  composed  songs  expres- 
sive of  the  tenets  which  he  would  inculcate,  and  adapted 
them  to  music,  to  be  sung  by  the  people.  His  son, 
Harmonius,  followed  the  example  of  his  father ;  and  such, 
according  to  Augusti,  "was  the  influence  of  their  efforts, 
that  the  Syrian  church  Avas  well  nigh  overrun  with  their 
errors."  ^^  And  not  only  the  Gnostics,  but  the  Manicheans, 
the  Donatists,  and  almost  every  heretical  sect,  employed, 
with  surprising  success,  the  same  means  of  promulgating 

44  Augusti,  DenkwOrdigkeiten,  5,  p.  417. 

4^  For  example,  the  successive  stanzas  of  the  hymns  in  the  Lutheran 
collection,  begin,  each,  with  one  of  the  terms  at  the  beginning  of  the  creed. 
1.  I  believe  in  God  the  Father,  tfec.  2.  I  believe  in  God  the  Son,  &c. 
3.  I  believe  in  God  the  Holy  Ghost,  «fec. 

46  Composuit  carmina  et  ea  modulationibus  aptavit,  finxit  psalmos  indux- 
itque  metra,  et  mensuris  ponderibusque  distribuit  voces.  Ita  propinavit 
simplicibus  venemum  dulcedine  temperatum ;  aegroti  quippe  cibum  recu- 
sabant  salubrem.  Davidem  imitatus  est,  ut  ejus  pulchritudine  ornaretur 
ejusque  similitudine  commendaretur.  Centum  et  quinquaginta  composuit 
hie  quoque  psalmos.  Ephraem,  Syrus,  in  Hymn,  53,  p.  553.  Comp.  Sozo- 
mon,  h,  e.  3,  c.  16.  Theodor.,  4,c.  29  3  also,  1,  c.  22. — DenkwUrdigkeiten, 
5,  pp.  272,  273. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  383 

their  tenets.  Taught  by  their  example,  the  orthodox  finally 
sought,  in  the  same  manner,  to  resist  the  progress  of  their 
errors.  Such  were  the  efforts  of  Ephraem  the  Syrian, 
Hilary,  Augustine,  and  others. '^'^ 

-Luther  well  understood  this  method  of  propagating  truth 
and  refuting  error,  and  employed  it  with  a  skilful  hand. 
For  his  great  work  he  possessed  remarkable  qualifications, 
which  are  seldom  united  in  one  man.  Among  his  varied 
accomplishments,  not  the  least  important  were  his  poetical 
and  musical  talents.  He  was  taught  music  with  the  first 
rudiments  of  his  native  language  ;  and  when,  as  a  wander- 
ing minstrel,  he  earned  his  daily  bread  by  practising  his 
musical  powers,  in  singing  before  the  doors  of  the  rich,  in 
the  streets  of  Magdeburg  and  Eisenach,  he  was  as  truly 
preparing  for  the  future  Eeformer,  as  when,  a  retired 
monk  in  the  cloister  at  Erfurt,  he  was  storing  his  mind 
with  the  truths  of  revelation,  with  which  to  refute  the 
errors,  and  expose  the  delusions  of  papacy.  One  of  his 
earliest  efforts  at  reform  was  to  publish  a  psalm-book,  A.  D. 
1524,  composed  and  set  to  music  chiefly  by  himself. ^^ 

The  psalms  of  the  church,  in  the  time  of  the  Reformation, 
were  wholly  of  a  doctrinal  character.  "  Hymns  merely 
inculcating  moral  truths,  which  are  so  abundant  in  modern 
collections,  were  wholly  unknown  at  this  early  period.  As 
now,  in  symbols  and  catechisms,  we  have  an  abstract  of 
the  Christian  faith,  so  then,  was  the  substance  of  the  fun- 

47  August!,  DenkwOrdigkeiten,  5,  pp.  275,  276,  414,  415.  Foj  further  in- 
formation on  this  point,  see  J.  Andr.  Schmidt,  De  modo  propagandi  religi- 
onem  per  carmina.  Helmst.,  1720.    4to. 

48  This  psalm-book  is  usually  ascribed  to  Luther,  though  it  bears  not  his 
name.  It  contained  eight  psalms,  of  which,  however,  but  one  bears  hia 
name.  But  he  published  in  1525,  two  editions,  the  first  containing  sixteen, 
and  the  other  forty.  In  the  collection  of  sacred  music  in  use  by  the 
Lutheran  churches  in  Germany,  consisting  of  two  hundred  and  fifty-three 
tunes,  twenty-jive  are  ascribed  to  Luther,  either  as  the  author  of  them,  or 
as  having  been  revised  by  him,  and  adapted  to  the  use  of  the  church.  The 
authorship  of  a  few  is  doubtful,  though  they  are  assigned  to  that  age. 


384  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

damental  doctrines  of  the  Christian  faith  embodied  in  their 
divine  songs."  "^^  Weapons  so  simple  were  employed  with, 
surprising  effect  by  the  great  Reformer.  Even  his  enemies 
acknowledged  their  hated  power.  Cantilenae  vernaculo 
idiomate,  quarum  plurimae  ex  ipsius  Lutheri  officina  sunt 
profectae,  mirimi  est,  quam  promoveant  rem  Jjutheranam. 
Quaedam  dogmaticae,  aliae  aemulantur  psalvios  pios; — 
recitant  exagitantque  Christianorum  vitia  sive  vera,  sive 
Jicta.^^  Such  is  the  mighty  power  of  sacred  psalmody  in 
propagating  the  Christian  faith. 

"  These  weapons  of  our  holy  war, 
Of  what  almighty  force  they  are  !" 

Have  our  missionaries  waged  with  due  diligence  and  skill, 
this  mode  of  warfare,  and  applied  these  weapons  from  the 
armory  of  heaven,  to  assail  the  strongholds  of  Satan? 

5.  Is  not  the  influence  of  sacred  music  too  much  over- 
looked as  a  means  of  moral  discipline,  in  our  efforts  to 
educate  the  young,  and  to  reform  the  vicious  ? 

Has  it  the  place  which  its  great  importance  demands  in 
our  primary  schools  and  higher  seminaries  of  learning? 
In  our  admirable  system  of  prison  discipline,  has  it  its  proper 
place  among  the  reforming  influences  which  are  employed 
to  quicken  the  conscience  of  the  hardened  transgressor,  and 

49  August!,  Denkwurdigkeiten,  5,  p.  287. 

50  These  hymns,  many  of  which  are  manufactured  in  Luther's  own 
laboratory,  and  sung  in  the  vernacular  tongue  of  the  people, — it  is  wonder- 
ful what  power  they  have  in  propagating  the  doctrines  of  Luther !  Some 
of  them  doctrinal  in  their  character,  others  imitating  devotional  psalms, 
they  repeat  and  promulgate  the  vile  sentiments  of  the  Christians,  whether 
true  or  false. —  Thomas  de  Jesu,  (Didacus  Davila)  Thesaur.  sapient,  divinae, 
T.  2,  p.  5il.  Luther  inserted  in  the  title-page  of  his  hymn-book,  published 
at  Wittenberg,  in  1543,  the  following  stanza: 

"  Viel  falscher  Meister  jitzt  Lieder  dichten, 
Siche  dich  fur,  und  lern'  sie  reclu  richlen. 
Wo  Gott  bin  bauet  sein'  Kirch'  und  sein  Wort, 
Da  will  der  Teufel  seyn  mil  Trug  und  Mord." 

Aug^sti,  DenkwUrdigkeiten,  5,  p.  287. 


PSALMODY    OF    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  385 

turn  him  from  tlie  error  of  his  ways  1^^  Has  the  power  of 
sacred  music  been  sufficiently  employed  to  restore  the 
insane  ?  We  know  the  magic  power  of  David's  harp  to 
tame  the  ferocious  and  frenzied  spirit  of  Saul ;  and  will 
not  the  same  means  have  a  similar  effect,  to  soothe  and  to 
tranquillize  the  poor  maniac's  bewildered  soul,  and  to  re- 
store him  to  his  right  mind?  We  submit  these  inquiries 
respectfully  to  the  careful  consideration  of  the  reader,  and 
leave  the  subject  for  the  discussion  of  an  abler  pen. 

Finally.  This  subject  suggests  the  importance  of  sim- 
plicity in  church  psalmody. 

Let  our  sacred  songs  be  simple  in  their  poetry.  Such  is 
the  poetry  of  nature,  of  devotion,  of  the  Scriptures.  If  you 
would  have  the  songs  of  Zion  come  from  the  heart,  the  off- 
spring of  pure  and  deep  emotion,  if  you  would  have  them 
stir  the  souls  of  the  whole  assembly  for  lively,  sympathetic 
worship,  they  must  be  indited  in  the  simplicity  of  pure  de- 
votion. And  let  the  notes  of  sacred  music  have  the  same 
delightful  simplicity.  Let  them  be  adapted  to  Congrega- 
tional singing.  Let  all  be  trained  to  sing  as  early  and  as 
universally  as  they  are  taught  to  read ;  and  if  you  would 
have  the  soul  ascending  in  the  song,  let  the  whole  assem- 
bly join  in  the  solemn  hymn  which  they  raise  to  God. 
The  primitive  church  knew  nothing  of  a  choir,  set  apart 
and  withdrawn  from  the  congregation,  for  the  exclusive 
performance  of  this  delightful  part  of  public  worship.  "  The 
Bible  knows  nothing  of  a  worship  conducted  by  a  few,  in 
behalf  of  a  silent  multitude  ;  but  calls  upon  every  thing  that 
hath  breath  to  join  in  this  divine  employ."  Have  we  done 
well,  then,  in  substituting  for  the  voice  of  all  the  people  in 

61  "  T  always  keep  these  little  rogues  singing  at  their  work,"  said  a  dis- 
tinguished overseer  of  an  institution  for  juvenile  offenders,  in  Berlin,  "  I 
always  keep  them  singing,  for  while  the  children  sing,  the  devil  cannot 
come  among  them  at  all ;  he  can  only  sit  out  doors  there  and  growl ;  but 
if  they  stop  singing,  in  comes  the  devil." — Prof.  Siowej  on  Com.  Schools, 
p.  26. 

33 


386  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  praise  of  God,  the  voice  of  a  few  in  a  choir  ?  For  the 
sweet  simplicity  of  ancient  melodies,  hallowed  by  a  thou- 
sand sacred  associations,  have  we  wisely  introduced  the 
musical  display  of  modern  airs  ?  Have  we  done  well  in 
substituting,  even  for  the  rude  simplicity  of  our  fathers, 
if  such  you  please  to  call  it,  the  profane  and  secular 
airs  of  our  modern  harmonies?  After  admiring  those 
charming  portraits  of  the  great  and  revered  reformer  which 
adorn  the  galleries  of  his  native  country,  clad  in  the  easy, 
simple  and  appropriate  costume  of  the  age,  who  would 
endure  the  sight  of  that  venerable  form  dressed  out  in 
the  modern  style,  so  trim  and  sleek,  of  a  fashionable  fop  ? 
With  the  same  wretched  taste  do  you  mar,  in  attempting 
to  mend  the  music  of  the  great  masters  of  another  age,  by 
conforming  it  to  the  style  of  the  present. 

It  is  exceedingly  gratifying  to  observe  in  the  public  jour- 
nals and  current  literature  of  the  day,  the  return  of  the 
public  mind  to  a  better  taste  in  sacred  music ;  and  to  notice 
that  several  of  the  ablest  masters  in  the  country  have  en- 
tered in  earnest  upon  the  work  of  reform.  Heaven  speed 
their  work,  and  hasten  on  the  day,  when,  with  sweet  accord 
of  hearts  and  voices  attuned  to  the  worship  of  God,  all  shall 
join  in  singing  to  his  praise  in  the  great  congregation. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

HOMILIES  IN  THE  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH. 
Under  this  head  we  shall  direct  our  attention 

I.  To  the  discourses  of  Christ  and  of  the  apostles. 

II.  To  the  homilies  of  the  fathers  in  the  Greek  church. 

III.  To  those  of  the  fathers  in  the  Latin  church. 

I.     The  discourses  of  Christ  and  of  the  apostles. 

The  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  in  connection  with  re- 
marks and  exhortations,  constituted  a  part  of  the  social 
worship  of  the  primitive  church.  The  apostles,  wherever 
they  went,  frequented  the  synagogues  of  the  Jews,  where, 
after  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  an  invitation  was  given 
to  any  one  to  remark  upon  what  had  been  read.  In  this 
way  they  took  occasion  to  speak  of  Christ  and  his  doctrines 
to  their  brethren.  Their  addresses  were  occasional  and 
apposite ;  varied,  with  consummate  skill,  according  to  the 
circumstances  of  the  hearer,  and  addressed,  with  great 
directness  and  pungency,  to  the  understanding  and  the 
heart. 

In  the  Acts,  we  have  brief  notices  of  several  of  the 
addresses  of  Peter,  and  of  Paul,  and  of  one  from  Stephen, 
from  which  we  may  gather  a  distinct  impression  of  their 
style  of  address.  The  first  from  Peter  was  before  the  dis- 
ciples, who,  to  the  number  of  one  hundred  and  twenty,  were 


3S8  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

assembled  to  elect  a  substitute  in  the  place  of  the  traitor, 
Judas.  Acts  1 :  15.  It  is  calculated  to  soothe  the  minds 
of  his  hearers,  oppressed  by  the  melancholy  end  of  this 
apostate,  by  shovvingr  that  all  had  transpired  according  to 
the  prediction  of  God's  word,  and  served  to  fulfil  the  coun- 
sel of  his.  will. 

The  second  was  delivered  on  the  occasion  of  the  shed- 
ding forth  of  the  Holy  Spirit  on  the  day  of  Pentecost. 
Acts  2:  14.  After  refuting  the  malicious  charge  of  having 
drunk  to  excess,  he  proceeds  to  show,  from  the  Scriptures, 
that  all  which  the  multitude  saw  was  only  the  fulfilment  of 
ancient  prophecy;  he  charges  them  with  having  crucified 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  whom  God  had  exalted  as  a  Prince 
and  a  Saviour,  to  give  repentance  unto  Israel,  and  remission 
of  sins.  Such  was  the  force  of  his  cutting  reproof,  that 
three  thousand  were  brought  to  believe  in  Christ  crucified. 

His  third  address,  on  the  occasion  of  healing  the  lame 
man  in  the  temple,  Acts  iii,  was  of  the  same  character,  and 
attended  with  a  similar  result.  His  fourth  and  fifth  were 
delivered  before  the  Sanhedrim,  in  defence  of  himself  and 
the  apostles.  Acts  4:  7.  5:  29.  Of  these  we  only  know 
that  the  subject  was  the  same  as  in  the  preceding, — Christ 
wickedly  crucified  and  slain  by  the  Jews,  and  raised  from 
the  dead  for  the  salvation  of  men.  Before  Cornelius  the 
centurion,  Acts  6:  34,  after  explaining  the  miraculous 
manner  in  which  his  Jewish  prejudices  had  been  overruled, 
and  how  he  had  been  led  to  see  the  comprehensive  nature 
of  the  gospel  system,  he  gives  an  outline  of  its  great  truths, 
attested  by  the  Scriptures,  relating  to  Christ,  to  the  res- 
urrection, and  the  final  judgment.  All  these  discourses 
manifest  the  same  boldness  and  fervency  of  spirit,  and  are 
directed  to  produce  the  same  result — repentance  for  sin, 
and  faith  in  Christ. 

Stephen,  in  his  defence  before  the  Sanhedrim,  Acts  vii, 
traces  the  whole  history  of  God's  dispensations  to  the  Jews, 


HOMILIES    IN    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  389 

and  of  their  treatment  of  his  servants  the  prophets,  whom 
they  had  rejected  and  slain,  and  finally  consummated  their 
guilt  by  becoming  the  betrayers  and  murderers  of  the  holy 
and  just  One.  Paul,  in  his  address  at  Antioch,  pursues  the 
same  style;  showing  how,  from  age  to  age,  God  had  been 
unfolding  his  purpose  to  give  salvation  to  men  by  Jesus 
Christ,  and  bringing  the  whole  to  bear  with  tremendous  force 
in  its  application  to  his  hearers.  "  Beware,  therefore,  lest  that 
come  upon  you  which  is  spoken  in  the  prophets ;  '  Behold, 
ye  despisers,  and  wonder,  and  perish ;  for  I  work  a  work 
in  your  day,  a  work  which  ye  shall  in  no  wise  believe, 
though  a  man  declare  it  unto  you."  Acts  13:  40,  41. 
Time  would  fail  us  to  follow  the  apostle  in  his  masterly 
address  before  the  Areopagus  at  Athens,  Acts  17:  22, — to 
attend  to  his  affecting  interview  with  the  elders  of  Ephesus 
at  Miletus,  Acts  20:  18,  and  to  his  admirable  defence  be- 
fore the  Jews,  and  before  Festus,  and  Agrippa  the  king, 
Acts  xxii,  xxiii,  xxvi.  With  the  Greeks  he  reasoned  as  a 
Greek, making  no  reference  to  the  Jewish  Scriptures;  but, 
from  their  own  poets,  and  the  natural  principles  of  philoso- 
phy and  of  religion,  convincing  them  of  their  vain  super- 
stitions. With  the  Jews  he  reasoned  as  a  Jew,  out  of  their 
own  sacred  books,  and  testified  to  all,  both  Jew  and  Greek, 
the  great  doctrines  of  repentance,  and  faith  in  Christ,  the 
resurrection  of  the  dead,  and  the  general  judgment. 

The  addresses  of  the  apostles  are  remarkable  at  once  for 
their  simplicity  and  their  power.  None  ever  preached 
with  such  effect  as  they.  Wherever  they  went  converts 
were  multiplied  and  churches  reared  up,  in  defiance  of  all 
opposition,  and  in  the  face  of  every  conceivable  discourage- 
ment. Strong  in  faith  and  mighty  in  the  Scriptures,  these 
few  men,  in  a  few  short  years,  were  instrumental  in  making 
greater  conquests  over  the  kingdom  of  Satan,  and  winning 
more  souls  to  Christ,  than  all  the  missionaries  of  all  Chris- 
tendom have  gained  in  half  a  century.  Whence,  then,  this 
33=*^ 


390  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

mig-hty  power?  Without  venturing  into  this  interesting 
field  of  inquiry,  we  may  offer  a  few  suggestions  in  relation 
to  the  characteristics  of  the  apostles'  preaching. 

1.  They  insisted  chiefly  on  a  few  cardinal  points,  com- 
prising the  great  truths  of  the  Christian  religion. 

Christ,  and  him  crucified;  repentance;  faith  in  him, and 
the  remission  of  sins ;  the  resurrection ;  and  the  general 
judgment ; — these  are  the  great  points  to  which  all  their 
addresses  are  directed.  The  simplicity  of  these  truths 
gave  a  like  simplicity  to  their  preaching.  Beaming  full  on 
their  own  minds,  and  occupying  their  whole  soul,  these 
momentous  truths  fell  from  their  lips  with  tremendous 
power  upon  the  hearts  and  consciences  of  their  hearers. 
No  power  of  oratory  or  strength  of  argument  could  equal 
the  awful  conception  which  they  had  of  what  they 
preached.  They  could,  therefore,  only  speak  in  the  full- 
ness of  their  hearts,  and  with  earnestness  and  simplicity, 
what  they  had  heard,  and  seen,  and  felt.  The  word  thus 
spoken  was  quick  and  powerful;  it  cut  to  the  heart;  it  con- 
verted the  soul. 

2.  Their  full  conviction  of  the  truths  which  they  preach- 
ed, gave  directness  and  pungency  to  their  addresses. 

They  preached  no  cunningly-devised  fables.  No  refined 
speculations  or  doubtful  disputations  employed  their  speech. 
But,  honest  in  their  sacred  cause,  and  much  impressed 
with  what  they  said,  and  anxious  only  to  fasten  the  same 
impressions  on  the  minds  of  their  hearers,  they  spoke  with 
honest  earnestness,  the  convictions  of  their  inmost  soul. 
These  strong  convictions  gave  them  the  noblest  eloquence, 
the  eloquence  of  truth  and  of  nature.  Pietas  est  quod 
disertumfacit,  says  the  great  Roman  orator.  Piety  inspires 
true  eloquence.  This  w^as  the  secret  of  their  eloquence. 
They  felt  the  high  importance  of  what  they  said;  and, 
springing  from  the  heart,  their  exhortations  touched  the 
hearts  of  those  to  whom  they  spoke. 


HOMILIES    IN    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  391 

3.  Their  preaching  was  whoWj  scripticral ;  based  on  the 
Scriptures,  and  restricted  to  the  single  purpose  of  making 
manifest  the  truths  of  God's  word. 

They  preached  not  themselves,  but  Jesus  Christ,  in  the 
very  character  in  which  he  is  revealed  in  the  word  of  God, 
and  to  which  all  the  prophets  have  given  testimony. 
Standing  thus  in  the  counsel  of  the  Lord,  they  had  strong 
ground  of  defence,  and  holy  boldness  in  declaring  what 
God  had  said.  Their  preaching  was,  accordingly,  in  the 
demonstration  of  the  Spirit  and  of  power.  Armed  with  this 
energy  divine,  is  it  wonderful  that  the  word  spoken  had 
this  quickening  power  ? 

4.  The  contradiction  and  persecution  which  they  con- 
tinually experienced,  gave  peculiar  earnestness  and  power 
to  their  ministrations. 

One  who,  like  Paul,  could  say,  "  None  of  these  things 
move  me,  neither  count  I  my  life  dear  unto  myself,  so  that 
I  might  finish  my  course  with  joy,  and  the  ministry  which 
I  have  received  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  to  testify  the  gospel  of 
the  grace  of  God,"  Acts  20  :  24 ; — such  a  man  only  waxes 
bolder  in  the  truth  by  all  the  conflicts  to  which  he  is  called; 
and  summons  up  unwonted  powers  in  proclaiming  the 
gospel  which  he  preaches  at  the  peril  of  his  life.  Standing 
in  jeopardy  every  hour,  with  an  eye  full  on  eternity,  and 
fearless  of  every  foe,  is  it  surprising  that,  with  surpassing 
energy  and  power,  the  apostles  declared  the  gospel  of  the 
grace  of  God  to  their  fellow-men  ? 

5.  They  preached  in  God's  name,  and  were  sustained 
by  the  undoubted  assurance  of  his  support. 

They  were  ambassadors  for  God ;  and,  supported  by  his 
authority,  had  great  boldness  in  declaring  the  messages 
of  his  grace.  If  God  be  for  us,  who  can  be  against  us  ? 
Strong  in  the  Lord  and  in  the  power  of  his  might,  fearless 
of  danger  and  of  death,  they  gave  themselves  up  to  the 
guidance  of  his  Spirit,  speaking  as  the  Holy  Ghost  gave 


392  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

them  utterance;    and,  like  their   Lord,  teaching   as   one 
having  authority,  and  not  as  the  Scribes. 

After  those  fragments  of  the  public  addresses  of  Christ 
and  the  apostles,  which  are  recorded  in  the  Scriptures,  no 
example  of  a  similar  discourse  in  the  primitive  church  re- 
mains unto  us,  until  we  come  down  to  Origen,  in  the  third 
century.  It  is,  however,  generally  admitted,  that  such 
familiar  remarks,  in  connection  with  the  reading  of  the 
Scriptures,  continued  uniformly  to  constitute  a  part  of  the 
social  and  public  worship  of  the  primitive  Christians. 
Such  instructions  were  expected  particularly  from  the 
presbyters.  Acts  20 :  28.  1  Pet.  5:2;  but  the  privilege  of 
public  speaking  was  not  restricted  to  them.  The  freedom 
of  their  worship  permitted  any  one,  with  the  exception  of 
the  female  sex,  to  speak  in  their  assemblies.  Nor  was  it 
originally  the  exclusive  or  principal  office  of  the  presbyter 
to  perform  this  part  of  their  public  worship.  ^  Hilary's 
testimony  to  this  effect  has  already  been  given.  2  Origen, 
again,  was  invited  by  the  bishops  of  Caesarea  and  the 
vicinity  to  preach  in  public,  though  he  had  never  been 
ordained  as  a  presbyter.  ^ 

Tertullian,  and  Justin  Martyr,  each  say  enough  to  show 
that  the  churches  of  Africa  and  of  Asia,  respectively,  still 
conducted  their  religious  worship  in  the  freedom  and  sim- 
plicity of  earlier  days.  "  We  meet  together  to  read  the 
holy  Scriptures,  and,  when  circumstances  permit,  to  admon- 
ish one  another.  In  such  sacred  discourse  we  establish  our 
faith,  we  encourage  our  hope,  we  confirm  our  trust,  and 
quicken  our  obedience  to  the  word  by  a  renewed  application 
of  its  truths.""*     The  whole  account  indicates  that  "  the 

1  Apost.  Kirch.,  1,  c.  5.  Comp.  J.  H,  Bohmer,  Dissertat.  7.  De  Dif. 
inter  ordinem  ecclesiast.,  &c.,  ^  39.  Eschenberg,  Versuch  Religionsvor- 
trage,  p.  85.    Rothe,  Anfange,  Vol  I,  pp.  155—160. 

2  Chap  11,  p.  340. 

3  Euseb.,  Eccl.  Hist.,  6,  c.  19.    Comp.  Lib.  5,  c.  10.  Lib.  6,  19. 
*  Tertullian,  Apol.  39. 


HOMILIES    IN    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  393 

brethren"  sought,  by  familiar  remarks,  and  mutual  exhort- 
ations, to  enforce  a  practical  application  of  the  portion  of 
the  Scriptures  which  had  been  read ;  and  to  encourage  one 
another  in  their  religious  hopes  and  duties. 

The  account  from  Justin,  which  has  already  been  given, 
corresponds  with  that  of  Tertullian,  with  the  single  excep- 
tion, that  the  addresses  were  from  the  presiding  presbyter, 
who  conducted  the  worship  of  the  assembly.  In  both 
instances  it  is  a  biblical  exercise^  designed  to  enforce  a  prac- 
tical application  of  the  truths  which  have  been  presented  in 
the  reading.  Not  a  single  text,  but  the  entire  passage  from 
the  Scriptures  which  have  been  read,  is  the  subject  of 
remark. 

The  taste  of  the  age  is  against  this  style  of  preaching, 
and  by  common  consent  of  pastor  and  people,  it  has  fallen 
into  neglect.  But  it  has  certain  peculiar  advantages,  which 
deservedl}^  recommend  it  to  the  consideration  of  every  min- 
ister of  Christ. 

1.  It  is  recommended  by  apostolical  precedent. 

The  apostles  were  directed  by  wisdom  from  on '  high,  to 
adopt,  or,  if  you  please,  to  continue  this  mode  of  address  in 
the  Christian  church.  They  were  content  simply  to  com- 
mend the  truth  to  their  hearers  as  God  had  revealed  it. 
They  strove,  as  the  only  and  ultimate  end  of  all  their  preach- 
ing, to  lay  the  heart  and  conscience  open  to  the  naked  truth 
of  God.  So  presented  and  applied,  it  became  quick  and 
powerful  in  producing  the  end  of  all  preaching, — the  con- 
viction and  conversion  of  men. 

2.  This  style  of  preaching  is  recommended  by  its  practi- 
cal efficacy. 

Never  has  the  ministry  of  man  been  attended  with  re- 
sults so  interesting  and  momentous  as  those  which  followed 
the  ministrations  of  these  holy  men  in  the  first  ages  of  the 
church,   who  knew  no  other  style  of   address,  and  who 


394  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

simply  sought  to  give  a  plain  exposition  of  Scripture,  with 
a  direct  and  pungent  application  to  the  hearer. 

3.  Expository  preaching  gives  variety  to  the  ministra- 
tions of  the  pulpit. 

The  preacher,  by  continually  offering  the  hasty  sugges- 
tions of  his  own  mind,  is  in  danger  of  falling  into  a  certain 
train  of  thought  and  illustration,  which,  by  frequent  recur- 
rence, gives  a  sameness  to  his  ministrations,  monotonous, 
almost,  as  the  tones  of  his  voice.  His  sermons,  thrown  off 
in  quick  succession,  and  the  crude  conceptions  of  a  mind 
jaded  by  the  ceaseless  recurrence  of  the  same  duties,  dis- 
close to  the  hearer  only  the  varied  lineaments  of  the  same 
features,  illy  disguised  by  the  different  scraps  of  Scripture 
with  which  they  are  headed.  But  in  the  various  portions 
of  the  sacred  volume  there  is  a  variety,  a  richness,  and 
fertility  which  no  uninspired  intellect  ever  possessed ;  and 
these,  if  successively  introduced,  may  be  an  exhaustless 
theme  of  discourse, — ever  new,  gratefully  diversified,  and 
yet  alike  interesting  and  edifying  in  their  turn.  All 
Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God,  and  is  profitable  for 
doctrine,  for  reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruction  in  right- 
eousness, that  the  man  of  God  may  be  perfect,  thoroughly 
furnished  unto  all  good  works.  2  Tim.  3:  16.  Why  for 
ever  set  this  aside,  to  inflict  upon  our  auditory  what  is  too 
often  the  production  of  a  barren  mind,  or  a  jaded  intellect 
and  cold  heart  ? 

4.  Expository  addresses  afford  the  happiest  means  of 
applying  religious  instruction  to  all  classes  and  conditions 
of  men. 

In  a  consecutive  exposition  of  the  Scriptures  a  vast  vari- 
ety of  topics  arises,  which,  discreetly  handled,  may  be  the 
subject  of  remark  to  enforce  duties,  which  otherwise  would 
never  come  under  the  teachings  of  the  ministry.  A  single 
epistle  of  Paul,  or  one  of  the  evangelists,  thus  expounded, 
will,  in  a  few  months,  lead  the  preacher  to  remark  upon 


HOMILIES    IN    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  395 

many  subjects,  which,  otherwise,  in  the  whole  course  of  his 
ministry,  might  never  find  a  place  in  his  public  discourses. 

5.  The  preparation  of  such  discourses  affords  the  preach- 
er the  happiest  opportunity  of  enriching  his  own  mind  with 
varied  and  profitable  learning. 

Many  a  sermon  is  written  without  the  addition  of  a  single 
valuable  thought,  or  of  a  new  fact  to  the  acquisitions  of  the 
preacher.  But  how  varied  the  inquiries  which  arise  in  the 
attempt  to  elucidate  a  portion  of  Scripture.  Geography, 
history,  philology,  philosophy,  theology  doctrinal  and 
practical,  all  are  put  in  requisition,  and  bring  their  varied 
contributions  to  elucidate  the  sacred  page,  and  to  enrich  his 
own  mind.  His  lexicons  are  recalled  from  the  neglected 
shelf.  His  Bible,  in  the  original  tongue,  is  resumed.  He 
drinks  at  these  sacred  fountains,  refreshing  alike  to  the 
heart  and  the  mind,  and  returns  to  his  people  with  fresh 
acquisitions,  that  make  him  both  a  wiser  man  and  a  better 
minister. 

Finally.  This  mode  of  address,  above  all  others,  gives 
the  preacher  opportunity  to  bring  the  truth  of  God,  with  its 
living,  life-giving  power,  to  bear  upon  the  minds  of  his 
people. 

That  which  the  preacher  speaks  is  now  no  longer  his 
own.  It  is  Jehovah's  awful  voice  which  speaks,  calling 
upon  the  hearer  to  listen,  obedient  to  his  high  commands. 
The  audience  may  cavil  at  the  preacher,  or  sit  by  in  cold 
indifference,  but  they  have  a  solemn  interest  in  these  mes- 
sages of  God  to  them.  Opposition  is  silenced,  and  the  ear 
is  opened  to  attend  while  Jehovah  speaks.  What  would 
have  fallen  powerless  from  the  preacher's  lips,  now  comes 
with  authority  and  power  divine,  to  convince  and  convert 
the  soul.  Multitudes,  on  earth  and  in  heaven,  can  attest 
the  mighty  power  of  divine  truth,  thus  plainly  set  forth 
from  the  word  of  God,  in  bringing  them  to  repentance. 
Let  the  minister  observe  the  moral  efficacy  of  his  various 


396  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ministrations,  and  he  will  find  that  when  he  has  ceased  to 
preach  himself,  when  he  has  withdrawn  himself  most  from 
the  notice  of  his  hearers,  and  brought  forward  the  word  of 
God,  to  unfold  unto  them  its  tremendous  truths,  then  has  he 
seen  the  happiest  fruits  of  his  labors.  Let  him  return, 
after  a  long  absence,  to  the  former  scene  of  his  labors,  and 
he  will  find,  that  while  his  hearers  have  forgotten  his  most 
elaborate  sermons,  they  still  remember  his  faithful  expo- 
sitions of  the  word  of  God  in  the  evening  lecture. 

II.     Homilies  in  the  Greek  church.^ 

From  the  third  century,  the  homilies  of  the  Greek  and 
Roman  fathers  are  so  different,  that  it  will  be  most  con- 
venient to  consider  them  separately,  confining  our  attention 
to  the  period  in  the  Greek  church,  from  Origen,  A.  D.  230, 
to  Chrysostom,  A.  D.  400,  and  in  the  Roman,  from  Cyprian 
to  Augustine,  through  the  same  period. 

With  Origen  a  new  style  of  public  address  began  in  the 
Greek  church,  which  had,  indeed,  some  advantages,  but  was 
attended  by  many  and  still  greater  faults.  The  following 
brief  outline  of  the  characteristics  of  the  style  of  preaching 
now  under  consideration,  and  of  the  circumstances  which 
led  to  its  adoption,  is  given  chiefly  from  Eschenburg,  who 
is  admitted  to  have  written  with  more  candor  and  discrimi- 
nation than  any  other. 

1.  Origen  introduced  that  allegorical  mode  of  interpret- 
ing the  Scriptures,  which  for  a  long  time  continued  to 
darken  the  sacred  page  which  it  aflfected  to  illustrate.  Not 
content  with  a  plain  and  natural  elucidation  of  the  histori- 
cal sense  of  the  text,  it  sought  for  some  hidden  meaning, 

6  The  writers  of  the  period  under  consideration,  are  Origen,  A.  D.  230, 
Gregory  of  Neocaesarea,  A.  D. 240 5  Athanasius,  A.  D.  3253  Basil  the  Great, 
A.  D.  370  5  Gregory  of  Nyssa,  A.  D.  370,  Gregory  of  Nazianzen,  A.  D.  379. 
Among  others  of  less  note,  may  be  classed,  Methodius,  A.  D.  290  3  Maca- 
rius,  A.  D.  373  3  Ephraem  the  Syrian,  A.  D.  370  3  Amphiloginus,  A.  D.  370 
—375  J  and  JXectarius,  A.  D.  381. 


HOMILIES  IN  THE  GREEK  CHURCH.         397 

darkly  shadowed  forth  in  allegorical,  mystical  terms. 
Great  as  was  Origen  in  talent,  industry,  and  learning,  he 
showed  still  greater  weakness  in  the  childish  fancies  in 
which  he  indulged  as  an  interpreter  of  Scripture.  The 
great  respect  in  which  he  was  held  gave  currency  to  his 
mode  of  preaching,  so  that  he  became  the  father  of  all  that 
allegorical  nonsense,  which  for  a  long  time  continued  to 
dishonor  the  public  preaching  of  the  ancient  church. 

2.  The  sermons  of  the  period  under  consideration,  were 
occupied  with  profitless,  polemical  discussions,  and  specula- 
tive theories. 

The  question  with  the  preacher  seems  too  often  to  have 
been,  not  what  will  produce  the  fruits  of  holy  living,  and 
prepare  the  hearer  for  eternity;  but  how  to  controvert  the 
opinions  of  another;  worthless  dogmas,  it  may  be,  deserv- 
ing no  serious  consideration.  The  speculations  in  which 
the  preacher  indulged  were  advanced  without  due  regard 
to  their  practical  tendency.  Whether  those  who  adopted 
them  would  be  made  wiser  or  better,  was  a  question  not 
often  asked.  Doctrinal  points,  rather  than  moral  truths, 
were  taught  from  the  Scriptures ;  and  often  were  senti- 
ments condemned  which  were  truly  just,  while  others  were 
extolled  which  were  wholly  worthless. 

3.  The  preachers  of  this  period  claimed  most  undeserved 
respect  for  their  own  authority. 

Flattered  by  the  great  respect  in  which  they  were  held, 
and  the  confidence  in  which  the  people  waited  on  them  for 
instruction,  they  converted  the  pulpit  into  a  stage  for  the 
exhibition  of  their  own  pertinacity,  ignorance,  and  folly. 
They  manifested  an  angry  impatience  at  the  errors  of 
others,  persecuted  them  for  following  their  own  convictions, 
and  condemned  them  for  refusing  assent  to  arbitrary  forms, 
which  they  themselves  prescribed  as  conditions  of  salvation. 
With  all  their  self-conceit,  they  manifested  a  time-serving 
spirit.  According  as  the  opinions  of  the  court  and  of  the 
34 


39S  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

principal  men  in  the  nation  favored  one  religious  party  or 
another,  were  they  more  or  less  reserved  in  exposing  the 
errors  of  the  same.  The  polemic  discourses  from  the 
pulpit  changed  with  every  change  of  administration  ;  and 
what  a  short  time  since  was  advanced  as  wholesome  truth, 
under  a  change  of  circumstances,  came  to  be  denounced 
as  damnable  heresy. 

4.  The  sermons  of  this  period  were  as  faulty  in  style,  as 
they  were  exceptionable  in  other  characteristics  which  have 
been  mentioned. 

Not  only  was  the  simplicity  which  characterized  the 
teachings  of  Christ  and  of  the  apostles,  in  a  great  meas- 
ure lost,  in  absurd  and  puerile  expositions  of  Scripture, 
and  corrupted  by  the  substitution  of  vain  speculations, 
derived  especially  from  the  Platonic  philosophy,  but  the 
style  of  the  pulpit  was  in  other  respects  vitiated  and  corrupt. 
Philosophical  terms  and  rhetorical  flourishes,  forms  of 
expression  extravagant  and  far-fetched,  biblical  expressions 
unintelligible  to  the  people,  unmeaning  comparisons,  absurd 
antitheses,  spiritless  interrogations,  senseless  exclamations 
and  bombast,  disfigure  the  sermons  of  the  period  now  under 
consideration. 

Causes  which  contributed*  to  form  the  style  above-de- 
scribed. 

1.  The  prevalence  of  pagan  philosophy. 

The  preacher  w^as  compelled  to  acquaint  himself  with 
the  philosophical  speculations  of  the  day,  to  expose  their 
subtleties,  and  he  unconsciously  fell  into  a  similar  mode  of 
philosophizing.  •  '  . 

2.  The  conversion  of  many  philosophers  to  Christianity, 
especially  at  the  beginning  of  this  period,  had  an  influence 
to  corrupt  the  simplicity  of  the  Christian  system,  both  in 
doctrine  and  in  discourse. 


HOMILIES    IN    THE-  GREEK    CHURCH.  399 

They  sought  to  incorporate  their  philosophical  principles 
with  the  doctrines  of  Christianity,  and  to  introduce  their 
rhetoric  and  sophistries  into  the  discourses  of  the  clergy. 
Every  discussion  gave  occasion  for  various  sentences  and 
forms  of  expression  unknown  in  Scripture.  But  to  give 
greater  authority  to  such  discussions,  certain  phrases  were 
selected  from  the  Scriptures,  to  which  a  meaning  was 
attached  similar  to  the  philosophical  terms  in  use ;  out  of 
this  strange  combination,  a  new  dialect  was  formed  for  the 
pulpit.  In  this  way  the  few  and  simple  doctrines  of 
Christianity  received  from  an  impure  philosophy  many 
additions  from  time  to  time  ;  and  by  continual  controversy 
were  darkened  the  more,  and  gradually  expunged  from  the 
instructions  of  the  pulpit.    • 

3.  The  evil  in  question  was  aggravated  by  the  want  of 
suitable  preparation  for  the  ministry. 

Some  betook  themselves  to  the  schools  of  the  Platonic 
philosophy,  and  became  practised  in  the  arts  of  the  orators 
and  sophists  of  thp,  day.  Others  sought,  in  deserts  and  in 
cluisLers,  to  prepare  themselves  for  the  sacred  office.  Here 
they  brooded  over  what  they  had  previously  read  and 
heard.  Here,  removed  from  intercourse  with  men,  they 
only  learned  to  be  visionary,  perverse,  self-willed  and 
immoral.  The  consequence  was,  that  their  instructions 
abounded  with  distorted,  false  views  of  the  virtues  and 
doctrines,  and  of  the  iileans  of  moral  improvement. 

4.  Ignorance  of  the  original  languages  of  the  Scriptures, 
and  of  just  principles  of  interpretation,  contributed  to  the 
same  result. 

Philo,  Plato,  and  others,  were  read,  instead  of  the  evan- 
gelists, of  Paul,  and  the  other  apostles.  The  Hebrew  was 
little  cultivated,  and  the  true  principles  of  exegesis  un- 
known. 

5.  A  blind  self-conceit  had  much  influence  in  setting 
aside  the  great  truths  and  duties  of  religion. 


400  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHrRCH. 

Forgetful  of  the  religious  edification  of  his  people,  the 
preacher  was  occupied  with  speculations  upon  trifling  and 
unmeaning  things.  These  accordingly  were  the  topics  of 
his  public  discourses,  whenever  he  was  not  employed  in 
the  endeavor  to  expose  some  heretical  dogma. 

6.  The  religious  controversy  of  the  day  gave  an  un- 
profitable direction  to  the  instructions  of  the  pulpit. 

The  preacher  had  constantly  the  attitude  of  a  polemic, 
watching  with  a  vigilant  eye  any  defection  from  the  truth, 
and  hastening  to  oppose  the  outbreak  of  some  destructive 
heresy. 

7.  The  increasing  consideration  of  the  bishop. 

This  was  itself  a  new  source  of  polemical  discussion. 
As  bishops  at  the  head  of  their  churches,  and,  in  the  larger 
cities,  already  having  great  authority  over  the  presbyters 
and  deacons,  they  would  not  receive  from  these  the  least 
contradiction.  If  any  reflection  was  cast  upon  the  dignity 
of  the  bishop,  justly  or  unjustly,  that  was  enough.  Not 
content  merely  to  be  honored,  the  bishops  would  be  im- 
plicitly obeyed.  To  this  demand  some  one  perhaps  ventures 
to  dissent.  If  ever  one  has  the  courage  or  inconsideration 
to  advance  an  opposite  opinion  concerning  a  doctrine  of 
Scripture,  or  a  sentiment  avowed  in  a  public  address,  he 
is  if  possible  rejected  from  office  by  the  bishop ;  and,  for 
what  he  may  have  said  or  written,  is  condemned  as  a 
heretic. 

8.  The  increasing  formalities  of  public  worship  had  no 
small  influence  in  diverting  the  mind  from  the  true  object 
of  public  religious  instruction. 

These  forms,  of  which  Christianity  in  its  original  sim- 
plicity had  so  few,  were  greatly  multiplied ;  great  attention 
was  paid  to  the  adorning  of  the  churches ;  festivals  be- 
came numerous.  The  effect  of  all  which  was  to  turn  off 
the  mind  from  the  essential  truths  and  duties  of  religion, 
and  fasten  attention  upon  other  things,  which  have  not  the 


HOMILIES    IN    THE    LATIN    CHURCH.  401 

least  influence  in  promoting  the  spiritual  improvement  of 
man.  The  preacher  sought  to  adapt  his  addresses  to  these 
forms  and.  festivals,^  and  often  fell  into  extravagances  and 
fanaticism.  Monks,  ascetics  and  recluses  were  extolled  as 
saints,  and  commended  as  examples  of  piety. 

Finally,  the  effeminacy,  the  melancholy,  and  the  love 
of  the  marvellous  which  have  ever  characterized  the  Eastern 
nations,  infused  something  of  the  same  spirit  into  the 
religious  discourses  of  their  preachers. 

III.     Homilies  in  the  Latin  church. 

The  writers  of  this  same  period,  from  A.  D.  250  to  400, 
to  whom  reference  is  had  in  the  following  remarks,  are 
Cyprian,  Zeno  and  Ambrose.  The  characteristic  dis- 
tinctions between  these  and  the  Greek  fathers  whose  public 
discourses  have  been  considered,  are  given  by  our  author 
in  the  following  summary. 

1.  The  Latins  were  inferior  to  the  Greeks,  in  their 
exegesis  of  the  Scriptures.  They  accumulated  a  multitude 
of  passages,  Avithout  just  discrimination  or  due  regard  to 
their  application  to  the  people. 

2.  They  interested  themselves  less  with  speculative  and 
polemic  theology  than  the  Greeks. 

3.  They  insisted  upon  moral  duties  more  than  the 
Greeks,  but  were  equally  unfortunate  in  their  mode  of 
treating  of  these  topics,  by  reason  of  the  undue  importance 
which  they  attached  to  the  forms  and  ceremonies  of  re- 

6  "  Of  this  depraved  state  of  the  public  inind,  we  have  a  striking  example 
from  Socrates.  In  relating  the  endless  discords  of  the  churches  in  regard 
to  their  rites  and  festivals,  he  refers  to  the  decision  of  the  apostolical 
council,  Acts  15  :  23 — 30,  to  show  that  the  apostles  gave  no  instructions 
touching  these  forms,  but  insisted  only  on  moral  duties,  and  proceeds  to  say, 
"  some,  however,  regardless  of  these  practical  injunctions,  regard  with  in- 
difference, every  species  of  licentiousness,  but  contend  as  if  for  their  lives, 
for  the  days  when  a  festival  should  be  held."—Eccl.  Hist.,  Lib,  5,  c.  22. 

34^ 


402  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

ligion ;  hence  their  reverence  for  saints  and  relics,  their 
vigils,  fasts,  penances  and  austerities  of  every  kind. 

4.  In  method  and  style  the  homilies  of  the  Latin  fathers 
are  greatly  inferior  to  those  of  the  Greeks. 

Causes  productive  of  these  characteristics. 

1.  The  lack  of  suitable  means  of  education. 

They  neither  had  schools  of  theology,  like  the  Greeks, 
nor  were  they  as  familiar  with  the  literature  and  oratory 
of  their  own  people.  Ambrose  was  promoted  to  the  office 
of  bishop,  almost  without  any  preparation  for  its  duties. 

2.  Ignorance  of  the  original  languages  of  the  Bible. 

Of  the  Hebrew  they  knew  nothing ;  of  the  original  of 
the  New  Testament  they  knew  little ;  and  still  less  of  all 
that  was  essential  to  a  right  interpretation  of  it.  When 
they  resorted  to  the  Scriptures,  it  was  too  frequently  to 
oppose  heresy  by  an  indiscriminate  accumulation  of  texts. 
When  they  attempted  to  explain,  it  was  by  perpetual 
allegories. 

3.  The  want  of  suitable  examples,  and  a  just  standard  of 
public  speaking. 

Basil,  Ephraem  the  Syrian,  and  the  two  Gregories,  were 
contemporaries,  and  were  mutual  helps  and  incentives  to 
one  another.  Others  looked  to  them  as  patterns  for  public 
preaching.  But  such  advantages  were  unknown  in  the 
Latin  church.  The  earlier  classic  authors  of  Greece  and 
Rome  were  discarded,  from  bigotry;  or,  through  ignorance, 
so  much  neglected,  that  their  influence  was  little  felt. 

4.  The  unsettled  state  of  the  Western  churches  should 
be  mentioned  in  this  connection. 

Persecuted  and  in  exile  at  one  time,  at  another  engaged 
in   fierce   and  bloody   contests    among    themselves,'''   the 

7  The  contests  for  the  election  of  bishops  often  ran  so  high  as  to  end  in 
bloodshed  and  murder,  of  which  an  example  is  given  in  Walch's  History 
der  Papste,  p.  87.    Ammianus  Marcellinus,  Lib.  27^  c.  3. 


HOMILIES    IN    THE    LATIN    CHURCH.  403 

preachers  of  the  day  had  little  opportunity  to  prepare  for 
their  appropriate  duties.  Literature  was  neglected.  Under 
Constantine,  Rome  herself  ceased  to  be  the  seat  of  the 
fine  arts,  and  barbarism  began  its  disastrous  encroach- 
ments upon  the  provinces  of  the  Western  church. 

5.  The  increasing  importance  of  the  bishop's  office. 
Their  pride  and  neglect  of  duty  as  preachers  kept  pace 

with  their  advancement  in  authority.  As  in  the  Greek 
church,  so  also  in  the  Latin,  this  sense  of  their  own  im- 
portance gave  a  polemic  character  to  their  preaching. 
But  in  this  church  they  were  careful,  not  merely  to  assert 
and  defend  their  own  dignity ;  many  also  became  indolent 
and  pleasure-loving,  as  their  incomes  increased ;  or  they 
manifested  a  spirit  equally  foreign  from  that  of  a  public 
religious  teacher.  They  sought,  in  every  possible  way,  to 
promote  their  own  power  and  self-aggrandizement.  They 
created  new  and  needless  offices,  better  suited  to  assist 
them  to  command,  to  govern,  and  to  maintain  their  dignity, 
than  to  promote  the  instruction  and  edification  of  the  peo- 
ple. By  such  means  they  sought  to  blind  the  eyes  of  the 
people,  and  to  forestall  the  popular  sentiment,  which  other- 
wise might  be  too  easily  formed  against  their  pride  and 
neglect  of  duty  as  religious  teachers. 

Others  sought,  by  the  appearance  of  great  sanctity,  by 
celibacy  and  seclusion,  by  fasting  and  the  like,  to  main- 
tain and  to  augment  their  importance.  In  the  practice  of 
these  austerities,  they  wasted  so  much  time  that  little  re- 
mained to  be  employed  in  preparation  for  public  speaking. 

6.  The  increase  of  the  ceremonies  and  forms  of  public 
worship. 

The  effect  of  all  these  was,  to  give  importance  to  the 
bishop ;  and,  in  his  zeal  for  the  introduction  and  general 
adoption  of  them,  the  essential  points  of  the  Christian 
religion  were  forgotten.  Need  we  relate  with  what  zeal 
Victor,  the  Roman  bishop,  engaged  in  the  controversies  re- 


404  "  .  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

specting  Easter  and  the  ceremonies  connected  with  it? 
What  cornplicated  rites  were  involved  with  the  simple 
ordinance  of  baptism,  and  the  abuses  with  which  they  were 
connected;  what  importance,  what  sanctity,  was  ascribed 
to  their  fasts,  and  what  controversies  arose  between  the 
Latin  and  the  Greek  church  from  the  reluctance  of  the 
latter  -to  adopt  the  rites  of  the  former  ?  What  incredible 
eflects  were  ascribed  to  the  sign  of  the  cross  ?s  Where 
indeed  would  the  enumeration  end,  if  one  should  attempt  a 
specification  of  all  the  ceremonies,  and  of  their  abuses,  which 
were  introduced  in  the  period  under  consideration.  Thus 
ancient  Episcopacy  touched  alike  with  its  withering  blight 
the  ministrations  of  the  pulpit,  both  in  the  churches  of.  the 
East  and  of  the  West.^ 

To  the  foregoing  view  we  subjoin  a  single  remark  or 
two. 

1.  Episcopacy  is  an  incumbrance  to  a  faithful  minister 
in  the  discharge  of  his  appropriate  duties. 

The  reader  has  noticed  what  obstacles  these  ancient 
prelatists  of  the  church  encountered  in  their  ministry.  So 
much  attention  was  requisite  to  guard  their  Episcopal 
prerogatives,  such  vigilance  to  root  out  the  heresies  that 
were  perpetually  shooting  up  in  rank  luxuriance  within  the 
church;  so  much  time  was  wasted  iij  useless  discussions  about 
rites  and  forms,  festivals  and  fasts,  and  all  the  ceremonials 
of  their  religion,  as  sadly  to  divert  their  attention  from 
their  appropriate  work  of  winning  souls  to  Christ. 

All  this  is  only  the  natural  result  of  an  exclusive  and 
formal  religion.  Such  a  religion  addresses  itself  power- 
fully to  strong,  origin-al  principles  of  our  nature.  "And 
the  results  are  as  distinctly  manifest  in  modern,  as  in  ancient 

8  Cyprian,  Lib.  2,  Testimon.  adv.  Indaeos.,  c.  21,  22.     Lactant.  Instit., 
Lib,  4,c.  27,  28,  Vol.  I,  p.  394,  ed.  Biinemann. 

9  Many  other  particulars  in  relation  to  the  homilies  of  the  ancient  church 
are  given  in  Christian  Antiquities,  c.  12,  pp.  237-^252. 


HOMILIES   IN   THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  405 

prelacy.  There  is  an  undue  inportance  given  to  the  ex- 
ternals of  religion,  which  have  little  or  no  place  in  the 
ministrations  of  the  pulpit.  In  this  perpetual  lauding  of 
the  church,  her  rites,  and  her  liturgy,  in  this  conscious 
reliance  upon  her  ordinances,  in  this  sanctimonious  exclu- 
siveness,  which  boasts  of  apostolical  succession  and  divine 
right,  in  this  sleepless  vigilance  to  guard  against  any 
imaginable  departure  from  the  rubric, — in  all  this,  we  see 
the  influences  still  at  work,  which  wrought  such  mischief 
in  the  ministry  of  ancient  prelacy ;  and  embarrassing  the 
faithful  preaching  of  Christ  and  him  crucified.  The 
charges  of  the  bishops  and  the  sermons  of  the  clergy,  show 
distinctly  the  strong  bias  which  the  mind  receives  from  a 
religion  surcharged  with  ceremonials,  and  boasting  its  ex- 
clusive prerogatives.  These  unconsciously  assume  undue 
importance  to  the  preacher's  mind.  His  Bible  furnishes 
him  a  text ;  but  too  frequently  his  rubric  suggests  his  sub- 
ject.^o  Such  is  the  natural  course  of  the  human  mind. 
Tt  fastens  strongly  upon  what  is  outward  and  sensual; 
forgetful  of  that  which  is  inward  and  splrlmal.  *•  The 
Divine  Founder  of  Christianity,  as  if  in  wise  jealousy  of 
a  tendency  which  may  be  so  easily  abused,  confined  the 
ceremonials  of  his  religion  within  the  strictest  limits." 

JO  Even  the  Christian  Observer,  for  May,  1804,  has  an  article  from,  a 
churchman,  gravely  inquiring,  not  after  the  best  means  for  the  conversion 
of  men,  and  their  continuance  in  the  Christian  faith,  but  for  the  "  most 
effectual  means  which  a  faithful  clergyman  can  take  during  his  life,  in 
or  del-  to  prevent  his  flock  from  becoming  Dissenters  qfter  his  death!"  As 
though  the  highest  ends  of  a  faithful  Episcopal  minister  were,  not  to  save 
the  souls  of  his  people,  but  to  save  them  from  becoming  Dissenters.  In 
the  foregoing  remarks,  allusion  has  hardly  been  made  to  the  Puseyite  party 
in  that  church}  and  yet  a  late  writer  claims  on  that  side,  nine-thirteenths 
of  the  charges  which  have  been  delivered  by  English  bishops,  within  a 
short  time  last  past 3  and  even  of  the  remaining  four,  only  one  was  decid- 
edly against  the  party.  One  of  this  class,  in  place  of  the  great  doctrines 
of  the  gospel,  is  intent,  almost  with  a  mystic  monomania,  upon  the  merest 
trifles, — clerical  costume  and  pulpit  etiquette,  chaplets,  crosses,  crucifixes^ 
wax  candles,  flowers,  "  red,"  "  white,"  and  "  intermingled." 

"Nescio  quid  meditans  nugarum  et  lotus  in  illis." 


406  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

According  to  the  canons  of  the  church,  which  were 
adopted  in  1603,  "whosoever  shall  affirm  that  the  rites 
and  ceremonies  of  that  church  are  'wicked,  antichristian, 
or  superstitious.,^  shall  be  excommunicated,  ipso  facto,  and 
not  restored  until  he  repent,  and  publicly  revoke  his  wicked 
errors."  Can.  6.  The  seventy-fourth  canon  directs  that 
archbishops  and  bishops  shall  wear  the  accustomed  apparel 
of  their  degrees,  and  that  the  subordinate  orders  shall 
"wear  gowns  with  standing  sleeves,  straight  at  the  hands; 
or  wide  sleeves,  with  hoods  or  tippets,  of  silk  or  sarcanet, 
and  square  caps."  They  are  not  to  wear  "wrought  night- 
caps, but  only  plain  night-caps  of  black  silk,  satin,  or 
velvet."  At  home,  they  may  wear  "any  comely  or  scholar- 
like apparel,  provided  it  be  not  cut  or  pinkt;  and  that  in 
public  they  go  not  in  their  doublet  and  hose,  without  coats 
or  cassocks;  and  that  they  wear  not  any  light-colored 
stockings."  All  this  is  gravely  entered  in  the  canons  of 
the  church,  and  "  ratified  by  letters-patent  from  the  king, 
under  the  great  seal  of  England,  after  having  bpen  dill- 
geuily  read  with  gietiL  cuiiLtJiiiiiienL  and  cuiuforu'"' 

2.  As  a  conservative  principle,  to  preserve  the  unity  of 
tne  church.  Episcopacy  is  entirely  inadequate. 

If  the  unity  of  the  church  consist  in  a  name  merely,  and 
in  forms, — in  the  use  of  a  prayer-book  and  surplice, — then 
may  Episcopacy  be  said  to  preserve  this  unity;  but  in 
what  else  have  they  of  this  communion  ever  been  united  ?  . 
how  else  have  they  kept  the  unity  of  the  faith  ?  In  the 
ancient  church,  what  was  the. success  of  the  Episcopal 
expedient  to  preserve  the  unity  of  the  church  ?  Let  Milton 
reply.  "  Heresy  begat  heresy  with  a  certain  monstrous 
haste  of  pregnancy  in  her  birth,  at  once  born  and  bringing 
forth.  Contentions,  before  brotherly,  were  now  hostile. 
Men  went  to  choose  their  bishop,  as  they  went  to  a  pitched 
field,  and  the  day  of  his  election  was  like  the  sacking  of  a 
city,  sometimes  ending  in  the  blood  of  thousands ; . .  so  that, 


HOMILIES    IN    THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH.  407 

instead  of  finding  prelacy  an  impeacher  of  schism  and 
faction,  the  more  I  search,  the  more  I  grow  into  all  persua- 
sion to  think  rather,  that  faction  and  she,  as  with  a  spousal 
ring,  are  wedded  together,  never  to  be  divorced."  U   ■ 

What  idea  does  the  profession  of  Episcopacy  at  present 
give  of  one's  religious  faith  ?  Is  he  Calvinistic,  Arminian, 
or  Unitarian;  high-church  or  low-church;  Puseyitish,  demi- 
popish,  or  what  ?  '^  The  religion  of  the  Church  of  England," 
says  Macaulay,  "  is  so  far  from  exhibiting  that  unity  of 
doctrine  which  Mr.  Gladstone  represents  as  her  distinguish- 
ing glory,  that  it  is,  in  fact,  a  bundle  of  religious  systems 
without  number.  It  comprises  the  religious  system  of 
Bishop  Tomline,  and  the  religious  system  of  John  Newton, 
and  all  the  religious  systems  that  lie  between  them.  It 
comprises  the  religious  system  of  Mr.  Newman,  and  the 
religious  system  of  the  Archbishop  of  Dublin,  and  of  all 
the  religious  systems  that  lie  between.  All  these  different 
opinions  are  held,  avowed,  preached,  printed,  within  the 
pale  of  the  church,  by  men  of  unquestioned  integrity  and 
understanding."  12 

As  an  expedient,  therefore,  to  preserve  the. unity  of  the 
church,  Episcopacy  must  be  pronounced  an  entire  failure. 
And  yet  they  of  this  denomination  present  the  extraordi- 
nary spectacle,  of  the  most  discordant  sect  in  all  Christen- 
dom boasting  the  conservative  powers  of  their  religion  as 
its  distinguishing  glory,  and  urging  a  return  to  this,  their 
"  one  body  in  Christ,"  as  the  only  means  of  preserving  the 
unity  of  the  church ! 

"  Prose  Works,  Vol.  I,  pp.  121,  122. 

12  Review  of  Gladstone's  Church  and  State. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


THE  BENEDICTION. 


I.  Origin  and  import  of  the  rite. 

It  seems  to  have  been,  from  remote  antiquity,  a  common 
belief,  that,  both  a  blessing  and  a  curse,  when  pronounced 
with  solemnity,  are  peculiarly  efficacious  upon  those  who 
are  the  subjects  of  it.  ^  So  common  was  this  belief,  that  it 
gave  rise  to  the  proverb,  "  The  blessing  and  the  curse  fail 
not  of  their  fulfilment."  The  consequences  were  momen- 
tous, according  to  the  character  of  the  person  from  whom 
the  prophetic  sentiment  proceeded.  The  blessing  of  the 
aged  patriarch,  of  the  prophet,  the  priest,  and  the  king,  was 
sought  with  peculiar  interest,  and  their  execration  depre- 
cated with  corresponding  anxiety.  Of  the  king's  curse  we 
have  an  instance,  in  1  Sam.  14:  24.  Saul  adjured  the 
people,  and  said,  Cursed  be  the  man  that  eateth  any  food 
until  the  evening,  that  I  may  be  avenged  on  mine  enemies. 
Comp.  Josh.  6  :  26,  with  1  Kings  16  :  34.  The  blessing 
and  the  curse  of  Noah  upon  his  sons,  Gen.  9  :  25 — 28,  and 
of  Moses  upon  the  children  of  Israel,  Deut.  xxviii  and  xxxiii, 
are  familiar  illustrations  of  the  same  sentiment,  as  is  also  the 
history  of  Balaam,  whose  curse  upon  Israel  Balak  sought 
with  so  much  solicitude,  Num.  xxii,  xxiii,  xxiv.  The  blessing 
of  the  patriarchs  Isaac  and  Jacob,  respectively,  was  sought 
with  peculiar  anxiety,  as  conveying  to  their  posterity  the 
favor  of  God  and  the  smiles  of  his  providence.  Gen.  xxvii, 

1  Dira  detestatio  nulla  expiatur  victima. — Her.  Epod.,  5, 90.   Hence,  also, 
the  expression,  Thyesteae  preces,  in  the  same  ode.    Comp.  Iliad,  9,  455. 


THE    BENEDICTION.  409 

and  xlviii,  xlix.  Comp.  Deut.  xxxiii.  The  son  of  Sirach 
expresses  a  similar  sentiment.  3:9.  "  The  blessing  of  the 
father  establisheth  the  houses  of  children ;  but  the  curse  of 
the  mother  rooteth  out  foundations." 

With  the  question  relative  to  the  prophetic  character  of 
these  patriarchal  benedictions  we  are  not  now  concerned. 
It  is  sufficient  for  our  present  purpose  that  the  benediction 
of  patriarchs,  of  parents,  and  of  all  those  who  were  vener- 
able for  their  age,  or  their  religious  or  official  character, 
was  regarded  as  peculiarly  efficacious  in  propitiating  the 
favor  of  God  towards  those  upon  whom  the  blessing  was 
pronounced. 

In  addition  to  all  this,  the  Aaronitic  priesthood  were 
divinely  constituted  the  mediators  between  God  and  his 
people  Israel.  They  were  the  intercessors  of  his  people 
before  his  altar ;  and  stood  in  their  official  character,  as 
daysmen  between  the  children  of  Israel  and  Jehovah  their 
God.  In  this  official  capacity,  Aaron  and  his  sons  were 
directed  to  bless  the  children  of  Israel,  saying,  "  The  Lord 
bless  thee  and  keep  thee.  The  Lord  make  his  face  shine 
upon  thee  and  be  gracious  unto  thee.  The  Lord  lift  up  his 
countenance  upon  thee  and  give  thee  peace."  Thus  were 
they  to  put  the  name  of  God  upon  the  children  of  Israel, 
and  the  promise  of  God  was  that  he  would  bless  them. 
Num.  6  :  24 — 27.  In  conformity  with  this  commission  to 
the  house  of  Aaron,  it  was  an  universal  custom  in  the 
worship  of  the  Jews,  both  in  the  temple  and  in  their  syna- 
gogues, for  the  people  to  receive  the  blessing  at  the  mouth 
of  the  priests,  the  sons  of  Aaron,  alone.  If  none  of  these 
priests  were  present,  another  was  accustomed  to  invoke  the 
blessing  of  God,  supplicating  in  the  prayer  the  triple  bless- 
ings of  the  benediction,  that  the  assembly  might  not  retire 
unblessed ;  but  this  was  carefully  distinguished  from  the 
sacerdotal  benediction.  ^ 

2  Vitringa,  De  Synagoga,  Lib.  3,  part  2,  c.  20. 

35 


410  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

This  view  of  the  subject  may  perhaps  aid  us  in  forming 
a  just  idea  of  the  nature  and  import  of  the  sacerdotal  bene- 
diction. The  tevm  benediction  is  used  to  express  both  the 
act  of  Messing,  and  that  of  consecratiiig, — two  distinct  re- 
ligious rites.  The  sacerdotal  benediction,  according  to  the 
views  above  expressed,  seems  to  be  a  brief  prayer,  offered 
with  peculiar  solemnity  unto  God,  for  his  blessing  upon  the 
people,  by  one  who  has  been  duly  set  apart  to  the  service  of 
the  ministry,  as  an  intercessor  with  God  in  their  behalf^ 

Both  this  and  the  other  forms  of  benediction,  in  the  acts 
of  consecration  and  dedication,  are  exclusively  the  acts  of 
the  clergy.  Only  the  higher  grades  of  the  clergy  were 
permitted,  in  the  ancient  church,  to  enjoy  this  prerogative. 
The  council  of  Ancyra  and  others  restricted  it  to  bishops 
and  presbyters.'*  And  in  all  Christian  churches  it  is  still 
a  general  rule,  that  none  but  a  clergyman  is  entitled  to 
pronounce  the  benediction.  In  the  Lutheran  church  none 
but  an  ordained  clergyman  is  duly  authorized  to  perform 
this  rite.  The  licentiate  accordingly  includes  himself  in 
the  petition,  saying,  not  as  the  ordained  minister.  The  Lord 
bless  you,  &c.,  but  The  Lord  bless  us.  And  if  a  layman 
is  officiating,  he  includes  the  form  of  benediction  in  his 
prayer,  varying  yet  again  the  emphasis,  and  saying.  The 
Lord  bless  us,  &c.  Their  doctrine  is,  that  the  minister 
stands  in  the  place  of  Christ,  to  bless  the  people  in  his 
name,  and  that  it  is  an  actual  conferring  of  the  blessing  of 
God  upon  the  people ;  of  which,  however,  none  are  par- 
takers but  those  who  receive  it  in  faith.  Such,  again,  is 
the  Roman  Catholic  doctrine  of  the  priesthood,  derived  from 
the  prelacy  of  the  ancient  church.  Lumediately  upon  the 
rise  of  Episcopacy,  the  clergy  began  to  claim  kindred  with 

3  According  to  Ambrose,  the  benediction  is — sanctificationis  et  gratiarum 
votiva  collatio — voiiva;  quia  benedicens  vovet  et  optat. — J.  Gretseri,Voh 
V,  178,  in  Lib.  1,  De  Benedictionibus. 

4  Cone.  Nic,  c.  18.  Ancyra,  c.  2.  Arelat.,  1,  c.  15.  Constit.  Apost., 
Lib.  8,  c.  28. 


THE    BENEDICTION.  411 

the  Jewish  priesthood.  The  bishop  became  the  represent- 
ative of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ;  and  the  priesthood,  like 
that  of  the  Jews,  the  ^mediators  between  God  and  man. 
This  delusive  dogma  changed  the  character  of  the  Chris- 
tian ministry.  They  now  became  the  priests  of  a  vicarious 
religion,  ministering  before  the  Lord,/o?-  the  people,  as  the 
medium  of  communicating  his  blessing  to  them.  This 
perversion  of  the  Christian  idea  of  the  ministry,  which  in 
an  evil  hour  was  put  forth  as  the  doctrine  of  the  church, 
opened  the  way  for  infinite  superstitions,  and  did  more 
harm  to  spiritual  Christianity  than  any  single  delusion 
that  ever  afflicted  the  church  of  Christ.  It  is  remarkable, 
however,  that  neither  the  New  Testament  nor  primitive 
Christianity  knows  any  thing  of  a  vicarious  priesthood. 

With  reference  to  the  intercessory  office  of  the  Jewish 
priesthood,  Christ  our  mediator  and  intercessor  with  the 
Father  is,  indeed,  styled  our  great  High  Priest.  Heb.  4: 
14.  Comp.,  also,  2:  17.  3:  1.  5:  10.  His  benediction 
he  pronounced  upon  the  little  children,  when  he  took  them 
in  his  arms  and  blessed  them.  Mark  10:  16.  In  his  sepa- 
ration from  his  disciples  at  Bethany,  when  he  was  about  to 
return  unto  his  Father  in  heaven,  he  ended  his  instructions 
to  them  by  pronouncing  upon  them  his  final  benediction. 
"  He  lifted  up  his  hands  and  blessed  them ;  and  it  came  to 
pass,  that  while  he  blessed  them,  he  was  parted  from  them 
and  carried  up  into  heaven."  Luke  24:  50,  51.  These 
acts,  however,  have  no  reference  to  the  sacerdotal  benedic- 
tions of  the  Jewish  priesthood.  They  are  only  the  expres- 
sion of  the  benevolent  spirit  of  our  Lord;  the  manifestations 
of  that  love  wherewith  he  loved  his  own  to  the  end. 

The  apostles,  also,  frequently  begin  and  end  their  epistles 
with  an  invocation  of  the  blessing  of  God  upon  those  to 
whom  they  write ;  Sometimes  in  a  single  sentence,  and 
sometimes  with  a  triple  form  of  expression,  analogous  to 
the  Aaronitic  benediction.     But  these,  again,  appear  to  be 


412  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

only  general  and  customary  expressions  of  the  benevolent 
desires  of  the  writer  towards  those  whom  he  addresses. 
They  are  a  brief  prayer  to  the  Author  of  all  good  for  his 
blessing  upon  the  persons  addressed.  'Whatever  be  the 
form  of  the  salutation,  it  is  only  expressive  of  the  wide 
wish  of  benevolence  which  swelled  the  hearts  of  the  apos: 
ties  towards  the  beloved  brethren  to  whom  they  wrote. 

But  in  all  the  writings  of  the  New  Testament  we  have 
no  indication  of  the  use  of  the  sacerdotal  benediction,  in  the 
Jewish  and  prelatical  sense  of  the  term,  in  the  religious 
worship  of  the  apostolical  churches.  It  appears,  indeed, 
not  to  have  been  a  religious  rite,  either  in  the  apostolical 
or  primitive  churches,  during  the  first  and  second  centuries- 
Neither  the  apostolical  fathers,  nor  Justin  Martyr,  nor 
Tertullian,  make  any  mention  of  the  sacerdotal  benediction. 
This  omission  of  a  religious  rite,  in  itself  so  becoming  and 
impressive,  is  the  more  remarkable  in  the  primitive  Chris- 
tians, inasmuch  as  they,  in  other  things,  so  closely  imitated 
the  rites  of  the  Jewish  synagogue,  in  which  this  was  an 
established  and  important  part  of  their  religious  worship. 

In  regard  to  the  reasons  of  this  omission,  writers  upon  the 
subject  are  not  agreed.  Some  suppose  that  the  secret 
discipline  of  the  church  afforded  occasion  for  this  omission. 
The  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  was  one  of  these  sacred  myste- 
ries, which  were  carefully  concealed  from  the  uninitiated. 
So  scrupulous  were  the  churches  on  this  point,  that,  for  a 
time,  the  use  even  of  the  Lord's  prayer  was  prohibited  in 
public  assemblies  for  religious  worship ;  because  it  was 
thought  that  even  this  conveyed  an  allusion  to  this  sacred 
and  hidden  mystery. 

Others  suppose  that  the  occurrence  of  the  sacred  name 
of  God,  "^ip],  to  the  Jews,  verbum  horrendi  carminis,  which 
none  but  the  high-priest  was  ever  pe]*mitted  to  pronounce, 
and  he  only  once  a  year,  on  the  great  day  of  the  atonement, 
that  the  occurrence  of  this  awful  name  of  Jehovah,  was,  to 


THE    BENEDICTION.  413 

the  early  Christians,  a  reason  for  omitting  the  sacerdotal 
benediction.^ 

But  the  reader,  we  doubt  not,  has  anticipated  us  in  an- 
other reason  altogether,  for  the  extraordinary  omission  of 
the  sacerdotal  benediction  in  the  primitive  church.  Was  it 
not  the  superintending  providence  of  God,  which  graciously 
withheld  the  apostles  and  primitive  Christians  from  adopt- 
ing a  rite,  rendered  obsolete  by  the  great  atoning  sacrifice 
of  the  High  Priest  of  our  profession,  and  susceptible  of  un- 
utterable abuses,  as  the  subsequent  history  of  the  church  too 
clearly  shows  ?  It  is  another  instance  of  those  remarkable 
omissions,  of  which  Archbishop  Whately  has  largely  treat- 
ed, and  with  consummate  ability,  in  different  works.  He 
has  noticed  the  wise  precaution  with  which  God  in  his 
providence  so  ordered,  that  no  possible  trace  should  be 
found  in  the  primitive  church,  of  any  prescribed  mode  of 
church  government,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  others ;  or  of 
a  creed,  or  catechism,  or  confession,  or  form  of  prayer,  or 
liturgy,  upon  which  superstition  could  seize,  as  an  invaria- 
ble rule  of  faith  and  practice,  and  abuse,  to  support  a  sanc- 
timonious religion,  which  should  conform  to  the  letter,  but 
disregard  the  spirit  of  his  word.  Such  an  omission  he 
regards  as  "  literally  miraculous."  Copying  so  closely 
after  the  synagogue,  and  yet,  against  all  their  Jewish 
prejudices,  dropping  this  rite  of  their  synagogue-worship, 
the  apostles  must,  on  the  same  principle,  be  supposed  to 
have  been  supernaturally  withheld  from  taking  that  course 
which  would  naturally  have  appeared  to  them  so  desirable. 
The  apostolical  benediction,  then,  is,  in  spirit  and  in. 
import,  altogether  unlike  the  Aaronitic  benediction  of  the 
Jews,  or.  that  of  the  prelatical  blessing  of  the  bishop  and 
priest.     It  is  nothing  more  than  a  brief  prayer ;  a  benevo- 

5  Siegel;  Handbuch,  2,  p.  114.  J.  H.  Haenen.,  Exercit.  de  ritu  benedic- 
tionis  sacerdotatis.  Jenae,  1682,  cited  by  Siegel.  August!,  Denkwttrdig- 
keiten,  10,  pp.  179,  180. 

35* 


414  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

lent  desire,  offered  with  solemnity  unto  God,  for  his  bless- 
ing upon  the  people.  The  several  forms  of  expression  are 
one  in  meaning,  and  express  the  desire,  that  the  blessing  of 
God,  both  spiritual  and  temporal,  may  be,  and  abide  with, 
the  worshipping  assembly.  The  clergyman  alone  pro- 
nounces the  benediction,  not  in  the  vicarious  character  of 
mediator  or  intercessor  between  God  and  his  people,  but 
solely  in  conformity  with  the  apostolic  precept,  requiring 
all  things  to  be  done  decently  and  in  order.  We  now 
return  to  the  prelatical  use  of  the  benediction. 

II.     Mode  of  administering  the  rite. 

The  Jewish  priests  pronounced  the  blessing  standing  and 
facing  the  people,  with  the  arms  uplifted,  and  the  hands 
outspread,  with  a  peculiar  configuration  of  the  fingers  ;6 
the  congregation  standing  meanwhile.  The  attitude  of 
the  assembly  and  of  the  officiating  priest  was  the  same  in 
the  Christian  church.  But  the  words  of  the  benediction 
were  chanted,  and  the  sign  of  the  cross  given. 

The  sign  of  the  cross,  both  in  the  Eastern  and  Western 
church,  was  an  indispensable  rite  in  the  benediction.  The 
rite  is  still  observed,  not  only  by  the  Eoman  Catholics,  but 
even  by  many  Protestants.  The  Lutherans  make  use  of 
this  sign,  not  only  in  the  benediction,  but  in  the  consecra- 
tion of  the  elements,  in  baptism,  ordination,  confirmation, 
absolution,  &c.  The  church  of  England  also  retained  the 
rite  in  baptism.'^  But  how  extensively  it  is  observed  at 
present,  the  writer  is  not  informed. 

6  Vitringa,  De  Synagoga,  Lib.  3,  p.  2,  c.  20,  p.  1118.  Vitringa,  Hadria, 
Reland,  Antiq.,  Sac.  Vet.  Heb.,  p.  102. 

7  See  canon  30,  where  it  is  sanctioned  and  defended  at  length.  The 
following  is  given,  among  many  instances  of  the  studied  and  superstitious 
formalities  which  have  been  observed,  to  give  a  mysterious  significancy  to 
this  sign  of  the  cross  in  the  benediction.  "  Graeci  aequo  atque  Latini, 
quinque  digitis,et  tota  manu  crucem  signantes  benedicunt.  Differunt  quod 
Latini,  omnibus  digitis  extensis,  Graeci  indice  medio  ac  minimo  extensis 
ac  modicum  incurvatis,  non  ita  tamen,  ut  inter  se  respondeant ;  sed  pollex 
directione  sit,  rectaque  respiciens,  medius,  pollicis  incurvationc;  introrsum 


THE    BENEDICTION.  415 

The  benediction  was  sometimes  sung ;  sometimes  chanted ; 
and  sometimes,  pronounced  as  a  prayer.  There  was  no 
general  rule  or  uniform  custom  on  the  subject.  But  when 
offered  in  connection  with  the  responses  of  the  people,  it  is 
sung  and  the  responses  chanted.  Such  at  least  is,  accord- 
ing to  Augusti,  the  custom  of  the  Lutheran  church,  and  to 
some  extent  also  in  the  reformed  churches. 

In  many  places  the  benediction  is  pronounced  twice, 
once  at  the  close  of  the  sermon,  and  again  at  the  conclu- 
sion of  the  worship. 

In  Catholic  churches  the  congregation  kneel,  or  incline 
the  head,  while  the  benediction  is  pronounced.  The  priest, 
arrayed  in  clerical  robes,  stands  with  uplifted  hands  and  a 
peculiar  configuration  of  the  fingers  ;  speaking  in  the  Latin 
tongue,  in  an  elevated  tone  and  with  a  prolonged  accent 
resembling  a  chant. 


REMARKS. 

1.  The  sacerdotal  benediction  was  very  early  made  the 
means  of  enhancing  the  sanctity  of  the  clerical  office  gen- 
erally, and  especially  that  of  the  bishop. 

It  was  supposed  to  have  a  peculiar  efficacy  in  propitiating 
the  favor  of  heaven.  A  mysterious,  magic  influence  was 
ascribed  to  it.  Even  Chrysostom  seems  to  have  supposed 
that  it  rendered  one  invulnerable  against  the  assaults  of 
sin,  and  the  shafts  of  Satan. ^     Accordingly  it  became  to 

vergat,  minimus,  inter  pollicem  et  medium  dirigatur  j  pollice  super  annu- 
laris ad  sese  moderate  deflexi  unguam  apposite  id  agunt.  Qua  se  ratione 
et  tres  divinas  personas,  digitis  nempe  tribus  extensis  5  et  duas  in  Christo 
naturas  3  duobus  ad  se  jumtis,  rentur  significare." — Leo  Allatius,  De  Eccl. 
Occid.  et  Orient,  censens.,  Lib.  3,  c.  18,  pp.  1357 — 1361,  cited  by  Augusti. 

8  Imo  vero,  mihi  ne  commodes  horas  duas,  sed  tibi  ipsi,  ut  ex  oratione 
patrium  aliquam  consolationem  percipias,  ut  benedictionibus  plenus 
recedas,  ut  omni  ex,  parte  securus  abeas,  ut  spiritualibus  acceptis  armis 
invictus  diabolo  et  inexpregnabilis  fias. — Cited  by  Siegel,  Handbuch,  2,  p.  3. 


416  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

the  clergy  a  convenient  means,  by  which  to  impress  the 
people  with  a  sense  of  the  peculiar  sanctity  of  their  own 
office,  and  the  importance  of  the  blessings  which  the  peo- 
ple might  receive  at  their  hands.  Even  kings  reverently 
bowed  to  receive  the  benediction  of  the  bishops,  who, 
especially,  were  not  slow  to  take  advantage  of  this  popular 
impression,  and  early  claimed  the  right  exclusively  of 
blessing  the  people.  The  subordinate  clergy,  having  been 
duly  consecrated  by  them,  were  permitted,  in  their  absence 
and  as  their  representatives,  to  pronounce  the  benediction 
upon  the  people.  Still  the  act  was  virtually  that  of  the 
bishops.  Qui  facit  per  alium  facit  per  se.  So  that  all 
clerical  grace  centred  in  the  bishop ;  and  from  him,  through 
his  clergy,  descended  down  upon  the  people  of  his  diocese.^ 
In  this  way  the  rite  became  the  means  of  exalting  the  office 
of  the  bishop,  and  of  inspiring  the  people  with  profound 
reverence  for  him  and  his  official  character. 

2.  The  sacerdotal  benediction  was  soon  perverted  from 
its  original  and  simple  use,  and  bestowed  on  various  occa- 
sions, upon  a  great  variety  of  persons. 

If  the  clerical  benediction  was  attended  with  such  con- 
sequences to  the  people  in  their  religious  assemblies,  it 
w^as  natural  to  expect  the  same  effects  upon  different  classes 
of  persons.  Catechumens,  accordingly,  and  candidates  for 
baptism,  energumens,  penitents,  &c.  &c.,  became  the  sep- 
arate subjects  of  this  rite.  Persons  of  every  description 
and  condition  pressed  to  receive  the  blessing  of  the  priest. 
Even  in  the  age  of  Constantino  this  rage  for  the  blessing 
of  the  clergy  was  forcibly  manifested  in  its  manifold  appli- 
cations to  different  classes  of  persons. i^     To  what  a  pitch 

9  J.  H.  Boehmer,  Jus.  Protestant,  Lib.  3,  vit.  40,  §  14,  and  §  41. 

10  Gretser  gives  the  following  instances,  among  many  others,  to  show  in 
what  estimation  the  blessing  of  the  priest  was  held.  Cum  S.  Epiphanius 
episcopus  salaminae  Cypri  Hiores  solymis  versaretur,  omnis  aetatis  et  sextis 
turba  confiuebat  qfferens  parvulas  (ad  benedictionem)  pedes  deosculans, 

Jimbrias  vellens,  ita  ut  gradum  promovere  non  valens,  in  uno  loco  vixfiuctus 


THE    BENEDICTION.  417 

of  extravagant  folly  and  superstition  it  afterwards  arose,  is 
sufficiently  manifest  in  the  rituals,  missals,  and  agenda  of 
the  Romish  church. 

3.  The  perversions  of  this  religious  rite  afford  another 
illustration  of  the  consequences  of  a  departure  from  the 
simplicity  and  spirituality  which  become  the  worship  of 
God. 

Possessed  of  the  idea  that  clerical  grace  belonged  to  the 
ecclesiastical  order,  which  might  be  imparted  to  another, 
by  their  benediction,  men  sought  on  many,  and  often  on 
frivolous  occasions,  this  blessing.  The  intervention  of  this 
rite  became  essential  in  almost  all  the  ordinances  of  religion, 
and  upon  all  classes  of  persons.  It  became  essentially 
the  consecrating  act  by  which  men  were  elected  into  the 
different  orders  and  offices  of  the  church.  If  clerical  con- 
secration gave  a  religious  sanctity  to  men,  so  might  it  also 
to  whatever  else  was  to  be  set  apart  to  a  religious  use. 
Hence  the  consecration,  not  only  of  the  bread  and  wine  of 
the  eucharist,  but  of  the  church,  the  altar,  the  bell,  the 
organ,  the  holy  water,  the  baptismal  water,  and  every  thing 
almost  that  belonged  to  the  sanctuary,  or  could  be  employed 
in  its  service. 

If  the  blessing  of  heaven  is  in  this  manner  imparted  to 
man,  so  might  it  be  also  to  his  fields,  his  flocks,  his  herds, 
and  whatever  else  might  be  employed  or  improved  for  his 
benefit.  Indeed  it  would  be  difficult  to  say,  who  among 
men,  or  what  amidst  all  which  is  devoted  to  the  service  of 
man,  has  not  at  some  tim.e  been  the  subject  of  sacerdotal 
benediction.il 

undantis  populi  sustineret,  Vol.  V,  p.  190,  So  also  the  venerable  Bede, 
in  his  Hist.  Eccl.,  Lib.  3,  c.  26.  In  magna  erat  veneratione  tempore  illo 
religionis  habitus,  ita  ut  ubicunque  clericus  aliquis  aut  monculius  adveniret, 
gaudenter  ab  omnibus,  tanquam  Dei  famulus  exciperetur,  et  jam  si  in 
itinere  pergens  invenir,  etur  accurrebant,  et  flexa  cervice.  vel  manu  signari 
vel  ore  illius  se  benedici  gaudebant. — Cited  by  Gretser,  as  above. 

11  The  Gregorian  Sacramentary,  for  example,  specifies  the  following  par- 
ticulars in  which  the  benediction  of  Lhe  priest,  Benedictio  domus — et  novae 


418  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

When  once  the  mind  of  man  has  taken  its  departure 
from  the  great  principles  of  religion,  few  and  simple,  whether 
relating  to  faith  or  practice,  it  wanders,  in  endless  mazes 
lost,  uncertain  where  or  upon  what  to  settle,  to  be  again 
at  rest.  So  easy  and  natural,  and  so  disastrous  withal  is 
the  descent  of  the  human  mind,  from  that  which  is  inward 
and  spiritual  in  religion,  and  pure  and  simple  in  its  mani- 
festation, to  that  which  is  outward  and  formal. 

4.  The  foregoing  considerations  suggest  another  strong 
objection  to  prelacy;  —  its  tendency  to  superstition. 

It  is  indeed  a  besetting  sin  in  man,  to  give  a  mis-direc- 
tion to  his  religious  feelings,  by  a  veneration  for  objects 
which  are  worthy  of  none  ;  or  by  an  inordinate  reverence 
for  what  is  venerable  in  religion.  Every  religious  cere- 
mony, however  appropriate,  is  liable  to  degenerate  into  a 
mere  form,  and  consequently  to  become  superstitious.  But 
this  danger  is  immensely  increased  by  the  multiplication  of 
rites  and  forms.  The  attention  given  to  them  soon  becomes 
inordinate,  extravagant,  superstitious.  The  superstition 
increases  in  proportion  to  the  number  and  insignificance 
of  the  objects  which  are  invested  with  this  religious  ven- 
eration. But  is  there  not  much  in  the  Episcopal  system, 
which  is  justly  included  in  this  category  ?  This  profound 
veneration  for  saints  and  saints'  days,  and  for  things  that 
have  been  the  subject  of  Episcopal  consecration,  this 
punctilious  observance  of  festivals  and  fasts,  this  scrupulous 
adherence  to  the  rubric,  and  the  letter  of  the  prayer-book, 
this  anxious  attention  to  clerical  costume,  to  attitudes  and 
postures, —  what  is  it  all  but  superstition  ?  giving  a  re- 
ligious importance  to  that  which  has  nothing  to  do  with 
heartfelt  and  practical  religion  ?     Even  the  bishop  of  Lon- 

domus. — Putei — Uvae  vel  favi — Ad  fruges  novas — Ad  omnia  quae  volueris 
— Crinis  novae — Agni  et  aliarum  carnium — Casei  et  ovorum — Ad  quem- 
cunque  fructum  novarum  arborum — Peregrinantium,  itenerantium.  To 
w^hich  many  things  have  been  added,  such  as  JNavis — Armorum,  enses, 
pilei  et  vexilli,  Turris,  Tlialami  conjugalis,  sepulchri,  &c. 


THE    BENEDICTION.  419 

don,  in  a  late  charge,  while  he  professedly  condemns  the 
Oxford  superstitions,  expresses  great  anxiety  that  the  rubric 
should  be  closely  adhered  to,  wishes  all  his  clergy  to  preach 
in  white^  sees  "  no  harm,"  in  two  wax  candles,  provided 
they  are  not  lighted;  and  approves  of  the  arrangement 
"  lately  adopted  in  several  churches,  by  which  the  clergy- 
man looks  to  the  south  while  reading  prayers,  and  to  the 
west  while  reading  lessons ! " 

Episcopacy  encourages,  indirectly,  if  it  does  not  directly 
inculcate,  the  notion  of  a  vicarious  religion.  Ancient  pre- 
lacy transformed  the  minister  of  Christ,  under  the  gospel 
dispensation,  into  a  Leyitical  priest.  By  this  means  the 
Christian  religion  was  changed  into  something  more  re- 
sembling Judaism  or  Paganism,  than  Christianity.  The 
priesthood  became  a  distinct  order,  created  by  the  appoint- 
ment of  God,  and  invested  with  high  prerogatives  as  a 
vicarious  propitiatory  ministry /or  the  people;  —  the  con- 
stituted medium  of  communicating  grace  from  God  to 
man.  The  nature  of  the  sacraments  was  changed.  The 
sacramental  table  became  an  altar,  and  the  contributions 
of  the  people  an  offering  to  the  Lord.  Papacy  has  held 
firmly  to  this  doctrine  of  a  vicarious  religion  down  to  the 
present  time.  Indeed  no  small  share  of  the  corruptions  of 
this  "  mystery  of  iniquity,"  originated  in  its  false  idea  of 
the  Christian  ministry. 

Protestantism  at  the  Eeformation  was  but  half  divorced 
from  this  delusion,  and  the  indications  of  this  principle  are 
still  manifest  in  Protestant  Episcopacy.  The  very  name 
of  ^^ 'priesf''  is  carefully  retained,  one  of  the  second  order 
is  not  a  minister,  a  presbyter,  a  pastor,  in  the  ritual,  but 
always  a  ^^  priest. ^^  The  bishop  is  a  reverend,  or  right 
reverend  father  in  God.  And  then  that  clerical  grace 
which  flows  only  through  this  appointed  channel  of  com- 
munication between  God  and  man,  the  grace  that  is  given 
by  the  imposition  of  the  bishop's  hands,  the   grace   im- 


420  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

parted  to  regenerate  the  soul  in  baptism,  the  grace  that  es- 
tablishes the  soul  and  seals  the  covenant  in  confirmation, 
the  mysterious  grace  imparted  in  the  benediction ;  provided 
always,  that  the  act  be  duly  solemnized  by  a  priest  divinely 
appointed  and  episcopally  ordained, — verily,  all  these 
resemble  more  the  ministrations  of  the  Levitical  priesthood, 
than  of  the  pastors  and  teachers  whom  Christ  gave  "  for 
the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  for  the  work  of  the  ministry." 
Behold  almost  a  whole  convention  moving  off  in  a  body  to 
prostrate  themselves  before  their  bishop,  and  receive  his 
blessing.  Such  are  the  superstitions  connected  with  the 
perversions  of  the  benediction. 

Momentous  consequences  followed  from  the  substitution 
of  a  vicarious  priesthood.  No  church  without  a  bishop, 
apostolical  succession,  divine  right,  the  validity  of  Episco- 
pal ordination  alone,  baptismal  regeneration,  the  mysterious 
efficacy  of  the  sacraments,  the  grace  of  Episcopal  benedic- 
tion and  confirmation;  truly  these  are  awful  mysteries; 
and  they  affect  more  or  less  the  whole  economy  of  grace. 
The  appropriate  final  results  of  such  a  faith  are  exemplified 
in  the  mystic  movements  of  the  Oxford  Tractarians.  The 
great  object  of  these  unprotestantizing  reformers  is  to 
reinstate  in  the  church  the  prelatical  ministry  of  other 
days,  and  to  restore  a  vicarious  religion  with  its  endless 
absurdities  and  superstitions.  Thus  "  the  character  of 
the  church  of  Christ  is  changed.  She  is  made  to  stand  in 
the  place  of  the  Redeemer,  whose  work  is  marred.  His 
atonement  is  incomplete,  his  righteousness  insufficient. 
Ceremonies  are  multiplied,  and  the  kingdom  of  God  is  no 
longer  righteousness,  and  peace,  and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost. 
The  office  of  the  ministers  is  of  course  entirely  changed 
and  their  true  character  lost.  Thunders  more  awful  than 
those  of  Sinai  are  heard.  All  is  discouragement :  the  ob- 
ject of  the  Christian  ministry  in  their  hands  being  appa- 
rently to  try  how  difficult,  how  painful,  how  uncertain  the 


THE    BENEDICTION.  421 

Christian's  course  can  be  made  with  that  ministry,  and  how 
impossible  without  it! 

"  In  a  word,  their  steps  are  dark,  their  ministrations  mys- 
terious ;  suited  rather  to  the  office  of  a  priest  of  some 
heathen  mythology  than  of  ambassadors  from  Christ,  min- 
isters of  the  everlasting  gospel,  whose  feet  are  beautiful 
upon  the  mountains,  as  those  that  bring  glad  tidings,  that 
publish  peace. 

"  The  aspect  which  it  wears  towards  those  of  other  com- 
munions is  fearful  in  the  extreme.  No  purity  of  faith,  no 
labor  of  love,  no  personal  piety,  no  manifestation  of  the 
fruits  of  the  Spirit,  will  avail  any  thing.  Though  steadfast 
in  faith,  joyful  through  hope,  and  rooted  in  charity,  they 
pass  not  through  the  eye  of  this  needle,  and  shall  not  see 
the  kingdom  of  God." 

The  great  evil  of  such  a  system  is,  that  it  is  a  religion 
of  forms,  of  mysterious  rites  and  awful  prerogatives. 
Heaven  in  mercy  save  us  from  such  a  religion  which  sub* 
stitutes  these  things  for  the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God, 
through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  To  Episcopacy  in  any 
form,  the  one  great  objection  which  includes  almost  all 
others  is, —  that  unavoidably,  if  not  intentionally,  it  en- 
courages that  besetting  sin  of  man, —  the  innate  propensity 
to  substitute  the  outward  form  for  the  inward  spirit  of 
religion. 

We  close,  therefore,  this  protracted  view  of  the  Govern- 
ernment  and  Worship  of  the  Primitive  Church,  with  a 
deep  impression  of  the  wisdom  from  on  high,  that  guided 
the  apostles  in  adopting  an  organization  at  once  so  simple 
and  so  efficient  in  promoting  the  great  ends  for  which  the 
church  of  Christ  was  instituted,  and  in  establishing  those 
forms  of  worship,  simple  and  impressive,  which  most  happily 
promote  that  spirituality  and  sincerity  in  the  worship  of 
God,  which  alone  are  well  pleasing  in  his  sight.  Nor  can 
we  resist  the  conviction,  that  the  substitution  of  the  Episco- 
pal government  and  worship  for  the  apostolical,  was  an 
36 


422  THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH. 

efficient  cause,  if  not  the  principal  occasion,  of  that  degen- 
eracy and  formality,  which  soon  succeeded  to  the  primitive 
spirituality  and  purity  of  the  church.  The  elegant  and 
forcible  language  of  Robert  Hall  is  the  happiest  expression 
which  we  can  give  of  the  conclusion  to  which  we.  are 
brought,  on  the  review  of  the  whole  subject.  "  The  descent 
of  the  human  mind,  from  the  spirit  to  the  letter,  from  what 
is  vital  and  intellectual  to  what  is  ritual  and  external  in 
religion,  is  the  true  source  of  idolatry  and  superstition  in 
all  the  multifarious  forms  which  they  have  assumed ;  and 
as  it  began  early  to  corrupt  the  religion  of  nature,  or 
more  properly  of  patriarchal  tradition,  so  it  soon  obscured 
the  lustre  and  destroyed  the  simplicity  of  the  Christian 
institute.  In  proportion  as  genuine  devotion  declined,  the 
love  of  pomp  and  ceremony  increased.  The  few  and 
.  simple  rites  of  Christianity  were  extolled  beyond  all  rea- 
sonable bounds ;  new  ones  were  invented,  to  which  myste- 
rious meanings  were  attached !  till  the  religion  of  the  New 
Testament  became  in  process  of  time  as  insupportable  as 
the  Mosaic  law." 


SCEIPTURAL    INDEX. 


Genesis  9 :  25—28 
Numbers  6 :  24—27 
Joshua  6 :  26     - 
1  Sam.  14 :  24 
1  Kings  16 :  34 
Psalms  22:  19        - 
Ecclesiastes  5:6- 
Joel  3:3'- 
Nahum  3 :  10 
Zepha.niah  3:3      - 
Haggai  1  :  13 
Malachi  2:7 
Matthew  6 :  9—13 

20 :  25—28 

27 :  35 

Mark  10  :  16     - 

_ 10  :  42—45    - 

15 :  24       -     . 

Luke  1 1  :  2—4       - 

23  :  34       - 

24  :  50,  51      .- 

John  3:  10 

— -4:21,24-      - 

19:  24      - 

Acts  1 :  15—34      - 


23 

14     - 
4,  13    - 
24—30 
7 

4       - 
29  •      - 
.1—8 
34 

8:  4     - 

-8:17       - 

8  :  25  - 

10 :  47     - 

9  :  32  - 

11:  1—18 

11;  19—24 

— -  11 :  29,  30 


Pa?e. 

-  409 

-  411 

-  411 

-  409 

-  m 

55 

-  167 

55 

-  55 

-  186 
157,  158,  159 
157,  158, 159 

-  323 

-  30 
,    .    55 

-  ■     -  411 

-  •-  .      30 
•    -  .      -    55 

-  "      -      323 

-  55 

-  -      41 1 

-  ■      -  158 

-  -345 

-  55 
-•       -   ■   388 

-  55 

-  388 

-  47 

-  ■      -      362- 

-  388 

-  33 

-  388 

-  28,  34,  57 

-  388 
■      ••  -        246 

-     .   -    297 
246 

-  297 
•        -        246 

-  .33 
33 

-  33 


Acts  13 :  1  - 
13:  17     - 

13:  40,41 

14:23     - 

15:  1 

15 :  29—33 

16 :  25 

. 17  :  22     - 

20 :  17,  28 

20<  18 

20:  18     - 

20 :  24 

20 :  28     - 

1  Cor.  1 :  10 

2:"1      - 

3:  5 

3  :  14,  15      - 

6:  1 

5:  4     - 

11:  13—16 

— 5:5-'       -■ 

-^ 6:5 

12:  28 

- — r-  14  :  26      - 

16:1 

14:16      -. 

14 :  26 

14 :  29,  32,  37 


Pasre. 
158 

-  45 
389 

34,  60,  64 
-    33,48 

-  33 
363 

-  389 
124,126,183,221,222 

253 


-  389 
391 

-  392 
32 

-  32 
31 

-  -      31 
34 

-  -      34 
32 

-  37 
37 

-  158 

-  '\'25 

-  33 
334 

-  364 
158 

-  58 

-  33,58 

-  33 
23 

Ephesians,4:  11     -        15,  179,330 

4:  13—16  -        -  18 

—  2 :  20  -        -        -    158 

3:5  -        -        -         158 

4:  11  -        -        .     158 

: 5:19       -        -         363, 376 

Philippiansl :  1  33,58,183,219,221,253 

2:  25-  -        -        -       33,222 

4:  3         -      .-        -        157 

Colossians  1:7       -        -        -      68 


2  Cor.  8  :  19 

^8:  23 

—9:  1 

Galatians  3:  3 


424 


SCRIPTURAL    INDEX. 


Colossians  3 :  16 
4:  10  - 

1  Thessalonians  1 

3:  2     - 

4:  1 

5:  21   - 

5:  12 

2  Thessalonians  1 
1:1 

1  Timothy  3 :  16 

3:  8 

3:  1—7 

4:  14 

5  :  21  - 

5:  17 

2  Timothy  1 :  6 
2   24.25 


Titus  1  :  5 

1 :  6—10 

Hebrews  2 :  12 
3:  I  I 


Pa?e. 

363 

58, 157 

;  1  -         -  58,  157 

-  58 
32 

-  32 
124 

1       -       58,  157 
364 

-  364 
180,  220 

-       126.131,223 
126,  178,  183 

-  31 
126 

-  178 

31 

-  364 
166,  183,  215.  219 

-      '  131 

-  411 
411 


Hebrews  4 :  14 
5:  10 

10:  25 

13:  7,17,24 


James  2 :  1 

2:  2 

1  Peter  2  :  9 
5:  2 


5 

5 

5 

2  John  1 


5:  2,3 
13 
12  - 
1 

1     - 
1 


3  John  1 
Revelation  1 
2:  8 


4—8 


4:8- 

5 :  9—14 

11 :  15—19  - 

15:3 

21 :  1—8      - 

22 :  10^18 


Pafire, 

-  411 
411 

-  40 
124 

-  32 
40 

-  78 
392 

-  128 
58,  157 

-  157 
183 

-  183 
183 

165 

-  364 
364 

-  364 
364 

-  364 
364 


INDEX  OF  AUTHORITIES. 


Agath.  Cone,  251, 284. 
Allgemeine  Kirchenzeit.,  p.  26,  No. 

10. 
Ambrose,  Opera,  179,  180,  369,  370. 
Ammianus  Marcellinus,  402. 
Ancyra,  Cone,  178,  410. 
Antioch,  Cone.,   63,   74,   276,  278, 

290. 
Aries,  Cone,  76. 
Arnold's  Christian  Life,  273. 

Wahre-Abbildung        der 

Ersten.,  4to.,  28,  291,  292. 

Athanasius,  Apol.,  208,  De  Synodo 

Arimin.,  267. 
August! ,  DenkwOrdigkeiten,  362,369, 

370,  381,  332,  383,  334,  413. 
Augustin,Ep.,  110,  68,74,  149. 

Opera,  178,    181,   218,  324, 

369  372 

Arelat.  Cone,  276, 277, 294, 381, 410. 

B 

Barcelona,  Cone,  63. 
Barnes'  Apostolical  Church,  155. 
Barrow,  \)r.,  on  Pope's  Supremacy, 
50,  105,  259. 


Basil,  the  Great,  294,  338,  343,  348, 

369. 
Baudry's  Selections,  64. 
Baumgarten,  Erlauterungen  Christ. 

Alt.,  107,  163. 
Beausobre,  156. 

Bengel,Erklarung.0fFenbarung.,161. 
Bernaldus,  Constantiensis,  224. 
Beza,  on  Acts  14:23,64. 
Bibles,  Swiss,  French,  Italian,  &c., 

on  Acts  14:  23,64. 
Bingham,  68,70,73,  76,97,225,337. 
Blondell,  on  Elections,  70. 
Apologia  pro   Hieron,   163, 

189,  225,  350. 
Bohmer,  J.  H.,  Diss.  XII,  Juris  Ec- 

cles.  Antiq.,  98,  155,  256,  392. 

Jus.  Protestant.,  416. 

BDhmer,W.,Alterthumswissenchai1;, 

72,79,124,251. 
Bower's,  Gesch.  der  Papste,  310. 
Bowden's  Works,  130. 
Bowdler's  Apostolical   Succession, 

143,  155,  194,  196. 
Bracar  ,  Cone  ,  251,  284,  302. 
Bull,  Bishop  Defensio  Fid.  Nic.,367. 
Burnet's  History  of  Reformation,192. 


INDEX   OF    AUTHORS. 


425 


Burton's   History   of  the  Christian 
Church,  51,  100,  202. 


Campbell's  Lectures  on  Eccl.  Hist., 

152, 156, 161, 165,201, 20.5.246,259. 
Canons,  Apostolical,  63,  271,  276. 
Carthag.,  Cone,  251,  276. 
Chapman, in  Smyth's  Presbytery  and 

Prelacy,  130. 
Chalcedon,  Cone,  74,  276,  290. 
Chrysostom,  Hom.  ad  Act.  1,  p.  57, 

74,  ad  Cor.,  103. 
Works,    149,  152,  163,  219, 

220, 287, 304, 305, 369, 370,372,415. 
Christian  Observer  for  1804,  353. 
Clarkson's     Primitive    Episcopacy, 

111,210,211,233. 
Clarkson,Dis.  on  Liturgies,343,  348, 

350. 
Clement   of  Alexandria,   149,   172, 

173,  325,  346,  369. 
Clemens.  Romanus,  Ep.  ad  Corinth., 

33,  36,48,  63,  65,  97,  164,  325. 
Codex  Ecclesiae  Africanae,63. 
Coleman's  Christian  Antiquities, 137, 

188,  265,  270,  288,  289,  368,  404. 
Conder's  Non-Conformity,  141,  192. 
Constitutions,  Apostolical,  149,  257, 

259,  410. 
Constitution  and  Canons  of  the  Epis. 

Church,  234,  406. 
Cyprian,   Ep.  685  67,  72,  100,  101, 

104,  176,  203,  205,  256,  257,  266, 

268,  276,  295,  338,  404. 
Cranmer,  Bishop,  191. 
Croft,  Bishop,  131. 
Cyril,  of  Jerusalem,  149. 


Daille,  ci-dessus,  155, 
D'Aubigne's  History  of  Reformation, 

78,  252,  268. 
De  Wette,  Acts  14:  23,64. 
Diodati,  on  Acts  14:  23,  64. 
Bu  Pin  Antiqua  Ecclesiae  Disciplina, 

52,  99,  102,  106. 
Sac.  Geoff.  Africa.,  207,  208. 


Echell.  Abr.,  Eutychius  Vindicatus, 

188 
Edin.Rev.,  212. 
Eichhorn,  Can.  Recht.,  267. 
Epiphanius,  149. 
Eliberis,  Council,  267,  271,294. 
Ephraem,  the  Syrian,  382. 
Epiphanius  Opera,  299. 
Erasmus'  Works,  138. 
Eschenburg,  Versuch.  Religionsvor- 

trage,  392. 

36=^ 


Eutychius  of  Alexandria,  186,  187. 

Eusebius,  Ecclesiastical  History ,33, 
72,  82,  104, 106,  139,  148,  149, 164, 
170,  171,  179,  268,  284,287,288, 
365,366,369,371,392. 

Vit.  Const.,  337,  347,365. 


Evangelist,  N.  Y,  208. 


Fathers,  early,  on  Elections,  65. 
Firmilian,  255,  338. 
Forbes,  Bishop,  193. 
Fuch's  Bibliotheca,  114,250, 


Gabler,  De  Episc.  Prim.  Eccl.,  225, 

254. 
Gangra,  Cone,  277,284,  290. 
Gerbert,  Musica  Sacra,  362,  370. 
Gerhardi,  Loci.  Theolog.,  139. 
Gieseler,  Lehrbuch.  234,  255. 
Gieseler,  Cunningham's  Trans.,  60, 

72,124,225. 
Goode's  Divine  Rule,  178,  194. 
Gratian,  224. 
Gregory  JNazianzen,  73,  80, 163, 223, 

303. 
Greiling,  Christengemeinen.,  38,  50, 

56. 
Gretser,  De    Benedictionibus,  410, 

417. 
Grossman,  D.,  Ueber  eine  Reforma- 
tion der  Protestantischen  Kirch. 

Verfass.  in  Konigr.   Sachsen.,  56. 
Grotius,  Comment,  ad  Act.,  11:  30, 

453  14:23,64. 

Tract  on  Lay  service,  139. 

Guerike,   Kirch.   Gesch.,  107,  251, 

254. 

H 
Haenen,  Exercit.  De  Benedic, 413. 
Hales'  Works,  128. 
Hall,  Bishop,  321. 
Hall,  Robert,  306. 
Hallam's  Constitutional  Hist.,  316, 

317,  358,  359. 
Hammond,  Henr.,  225. 
Hardy,  Rev.  Th.,  288,  306. 
Hawes'  Tribute,  240. 
Hawks,  Rev.  Dr.,  234,  261. 
Hefele,  C.  J.  ed.  of  Clem,  ad  Cor., 

65. 
Hegesippus,  148,  149. 
Henke,  Allgem.  Gesch.  der  Christ. 

Kirch.,  257,  267. 
Herder,  on  Psalmody  of  the  Ancient 

Church,  373. 
Higginson,  Rev.  John,  243. 
Hilary,  Comment.  178,179,181,236, 

370. 
Hooker's  Ecclesiastical  Polity,  109, 


426 


INDEX    OF    AUTHORS. 


Horace,  405,  408. 

Hubbard,  Rev.  William,  243. 

Hull  man,  Urspriinge  der  Verfass.  in 

Mittelalter,  310. 
H.  W.  D.,  of  Philadelphia,  preface, 

and  190. 

I 
Ignatius,  to  the  Philadelphians  and 

Smyrneans,  62.  66,  ad  Phil.,  109, 

204-,  Epistles,   197,  199,  203,  204. 
Iliad     XXIII,  55. 

11,77,408. 

Irenaeus'  Works,  169,  170,  171,  203, 

255,  325. 
Isidor.  Pelus.,  376. 


erome's  Works,  69,  132,  133,  149, 
182,  183,  184,  185,  186,  214,  216, 
217,219,300,302,371,376. 

Jewel,  Bishop,  218. 

Justinian,  76. 

Justin  Martyr,  167,  169,  203,  247, 
325,  339,  343,  366. 

King's  Primitive  Christianity,  -50, 
70,  97,  99,  105,  193,  202,  342. 

L 

Lactantius,  Instit.,404. 
Lampridius,  Vit.  Severi,  67. 
Lancey,  De,  Bishop,  197. 
Laodicea,  Council,  208,  276,  290. 
Launcelot,  J.  P.,  225. 
Le  Bret,  Gesch.  Von  Ital.,  310. 
Leo   Allatiiis,   De   Eccl.  Occid.  et 

Orient.,  415. 
Leo  the  Great,  79. 
Leo  VII,  291. 

Letters  to  the  Laity,  263,  264. 
Locke  on  Government,  278. 
Lucian's  Philopatris,  325. 
Luther's  first  Hymn  Book,  384. 

M 

Macaulay's  Miscel.,  239,  317,318, 

360,  407. 
Macon.  Cone,  302. 
Magdeburg  Centuriators,  111. 
Mantand  d'Ogly,  156. 
Marca,  Peter  de,  255. 
Mason's  Works,  129,  130,  155,  218, 

259. 
Mather's  Apology,  192. 
Mendoza,  de  Ferdin-,  267. 
Meyer,  on  Acts  14 :  23,  64. 
Miller,  Rev.  Dr.,  Letters,  191. 
Milton's  Prose  Works,  148, 169, 175, 

199,  238,  295,  407. 
Morinus,  De  Ordinat.,  188. 
Mosheim,  De  Rebus  Christianorum 

anteConstantinumMagnum,Com. 


mentarii,4to,35,  48,  50,  52,  55,  59, 
60,  62,  70,  107,  108,  115,  249,  251, 
255,  257,  268,301,303. 
Mosheim,Can.  Recht.,105,  254,  259, 
268. 

Hist.  Eccl.,  254. 


Munscher,    Handbuch    der   Christ. 

Dog.,  257. 
Mtlnter,   Met.  Offenbar.,  346,  362, 

365,  367, 371. 

N 
Neal's  History  of  the  Puritans,  317, 

359. 
Neander's   Allgemeine   Geschichte' 
der    Christlichen    Religion    und 
Kirche,  34,  43,48,  59,  61, 105, 108, 
139,  251,  253,  254,268,278,371. 

Antagonisticus,  332. 

Geschichte   der   Pflantzung 


und  Leitung  der  Christlichen 
Kirche,  25,  32,  35,  37,  42,  61,  63, 
124,  131,  137,  142,  149,  155,  156, 
253,  254,  363,  392. 

Introduction  to  this  work,  13 


—23,  157. 
IVecessary  Erudition,  192. 
]\eocaesarea.  Cone  ,  63. 
Nice,  Council,  can.  6,  52,  74,  271, 

276.,  410. 
Nicholas  Tudischus,  225. 
Norton,  Prof.,  197. 


Observer,  Christian  144,  193,405. 

Odyss.,  Homeri,55. 

Onderdonk's  Episcopacy  tested,  144, 

153. 
Origen,  against  Celsus,  66. 

Homily  on  Levit.,  66. 

— Com.  in  Math.,  102,  112. 

— — —  De  Orat.   159. 

Opera,  257, 289, 290, 292, 323, 


&43,  366. 
Orleans,  Cone,  77. 
Owen's.  Gospel  Church,  58. 


Paris,  Cone,  79. 

Pertsch,  Canon  Recht.,31,  254,  301. 

Kirchliche  Historic,   Vol.  1, 


31,  36,  71,  72,  105,  251,  254,  285, 
301. 

Petavius  on  Eutych.,  of  Alex.,  188. 

Planck,  Geschichte  der  Christlich- 
Kirchlichen,  Gesellschafts-Ver- 
fassung,  5  Bde.,  8vo.,  Vol.  I,  27, 
31,  71,  72,  73,  74,  107,  114,  115, 
116,  121,  189-,  250;  251,  254,  257, 
267,  268/  271,  277,  281,  283,284, 
285,  291,  2M,  298,  301,  807,  309. 


INDEX    OF    AUTHORS. 


427 


Pliny's  Letters,  246. 

Polycarp,  Ep.,  to  the  Philipians,  97, 
165,325. 

Quien  Le,  on  Eutycliius  of  Alexan- 
dria, 188. 

R 

Ranke's  Hist,  of  Popes,  229. 

Recorder  Episc,  237.      • 

Rfehkopf.  Vit.  Patriarch  Alex.,  188. 

Reland,  Antiq.  Sac.  Vet.  Heb.,  414. 

Renandot.  Hist.  Patriarch  Alex  ,188. 

Rheinwald,  Kirchliche  Archaologie, 
124,  163,  269. 

Riddle's  Christian  Antiquities,  68, 
70,97,99,163,165,347. 

Chronology,  51,72,  74, 79,  82, 

109.  267,  349. 

Rigaltius,  138. 

Rohr's  Kritischen  Predigenbiblio- 
thek,  56. 

Rothe,  Die  Anfange  derChristlichen 
Kirche,  Vol.  I,  25,  42,  43,  46,  57, 
68,  59,  121-,  131 ,  136, 142, 147, 152, 
155,  180,  198,  392. 


Sack,  Comment.  Theolog.  Inst.,  36. 
Salvianus,  304. 
Schoene.Geschichtsforschungender 

Kirclilichen  Gebrauchen  und  Ein- 

richtungen  Christen,  28,  131,  205, 

207,  208,  251,  340,  350. 
Schroeter  Klein,  und  Fiir  Christen- 

tham  Oppositionschrift,  Iv.,  28. 
Schoetgen,  Horae.  Heb.,  158,  160. 
Scholiast,  Greek,  223. 
Schroekhs,  Kirch.  Gesch.,  308. 
Scriptores  Ecclesiastici,  De  Musica, 

376. 
Selden.Origines  et  Romae,cited;187. 
Semisch,  C.,on  Justin,  339. 
Severus,  Alex.,  67. 
Sidonius  Apollhiar.,  74,  76,  77,  303. 
Siegel,    H-.indbuch    der   Christlich- 

Kirchlichen  Alterthdmen,  4  Bde. 

28,  124,  251,  269,  276,  277,  281, 

411. 
Simonis,  Vorlesungen  aber  Christ. 

Alterthum.,  79. 
Siricius,  Ep.  ad  Himer.,72. 
Smyth  on  Presbytery  and  Prelacy, 

177. 
Pres.  Repub.,  234,  263,  274, 

278,318,- 

. r  Apostolical  Succession,  131, 

.  192. 

Presbytery  and  not  Prelacy, 


Spectator,  Christian,  192. 
Spittlers'  Canon  Recht.,  31,251,  255, 
.  267. 

Stillingfleet's  Irenicum,  192, 193,204. 
Suicer,  on  /f t^oro^'fOi,  64. 
Thesaur.,  256. 


Sulpitius,Severus,Vit.  e:  Martmi,  68. 
Symmachus,  Ep.,  76. 
Synessii;  Ep,  74,  163 


Talmud,  Jerusalem,  160. 

Tarracon,  Cone,  251. 

TertuUian's  Apology,  66.  98,  173-, 
343,344.34.5,365,392.  De  Poenit.-, 
104.  DePudicit.,  99,DeFuga,112 
Ad  Castitat,  112,  256.  DeJejun., 
1 15.  De  Anima,  365.  De  Corona, 
174.  DeBapt.,174,337.  De  Prae- 
scrip.,  255.  De  Monog.,256.  De 
Oratione,  326,  327. 

Theodoret.  Eccl.  History,  68,208, 
221,369,382.  " 

Theodoras  Mopsues,  369. 

Theodosian,  Codex,  284,  283,  299. 

ThojTias  de  Jesu.  384. 

Tindal,  on  Acts  14:  24,64. 

Toletum,  Cone.  303. 

Tracts  for  the  Times,  122,  348,  350. 

Trajan's  Epistle,  365. 

Tyndale,  on  Acts  14  :  24,  64. 

Urban  11,  Pope,  224. 

Usher,  Archbishop,  192,  225, 

Valentinian  III,  77. 

Valesius  in  Euseb.,  293. 

Valers  and  Henke,  AUgem.  Kirch.. 
Gesch.,  267. 

V6nema,  Institutiones  Hist,  Eccles. 
119: 

Vitringa,  De  Synagoga  Vetere,  4to., 
40,  45,  46,  158,  225,  409,- 414, 

W. 

Waddin^ton's  Church  Hist.,  165. 
Wake,  Bishop,  on  Clem.  Ep.ad  Cor., 

65. 
Wnlch,  De  Hymnis   Eccl.   Apost., 

363  ;  Hist,  der  Papste,  402. 
Whately's  Errors  of  Romanism,  356, 

360. 


130,  131,  155.  192. 
Socrates'  History  of  the  Church,  32, 

50,68,209.  233,299,401. 
Sozomen.Eccl.  History, 68, 208, 209, 

284.  288,  293,  382. 


•  Kingdom   of  Christ,  43,  52, 

161,  196. 
Whittaker,  192. 
Wiseman,   "Dr.    on  the   Tractarian 

movement,  360. 
Witsius,  De  Oratione,  350. 
Xenophon's  Memorabilia.  134. 
Ziegler's -Versuch  der  Kirrhlichen 

Verfns§ungsformen,  124,  250,  254,' 

281,291,307,309,310. 
Zunz.  Die  Gottesdienstlichen  Vor- 

trage  der  Juden.,  160, 


GENERAL  INDEX. 


Admission  to  the  church,  mode  of,  113 
^'Ayyelog  t^,  sxxlj^alug^  157,159 
Alexandria  moiherchurcli,  251 
Ambrose  clioseii  bishop,  6S,  73 
Angel  of  cbiirches  supposed  bishop,  144 

not  bisliop,  157—161 
Antioch,  Council  of,  63,  74,  276,  278,290 
Antistes,  anlistes  sacrorum,  163 
Apoilos  not  ordained,  142 
Apostles,  shun  tlie  distinctions  of  rank 
30;  disown  Episcopal  power,  31,  146 
brotherly  saluialions,  33;  remonstrate 
with  the  church,  and  address  them  as 
independent  fraternity,  33— 35, 38;  do 
not  baptize,  137 ;  their  oversight  of  the 
churches,  150;   govern  them  collect- 
ively, 151 
Apostolical  succession,  origin  of,  296; 

derived  from  Romish  church,  311 
Archer's  Speech,  277 
^'Ag/oi^ieg  £xxh](iL(i)v,  163 
Aristocracy  in  elections,  76;  govern  the 
church,  77;  rise  in  the  church,  247 — 
252;   conventional,  unauthorized,  250 
Auretius,  reader,  71 

B. 

Baptism  by  presbyters,  137 

Barnabas  the  Evangelist,  159 

Basilinopolls,  251 

Benediction,  origin  and  import  of  the 
rite,  403;  Aaronilic,  411 ;  apostolical, 
entirely  unlike  the  benediction  of  the 
Jewish  priesthood,andthatof  prelacy, 
412 — 414;  mode  of  administering  the 
rite,  413 ;  abuses  of  it,  415—422 

Bengel,  on  the  angel  of  the  church,  161 

Bible,  a  republican  book,  240 

-. — ,  withheld  from  the  laity,  287 

Bingham,  on  elections,  63 

Bishops,  their  office,  36;  their  election 
resisted,  73;  not  distinguished  from 
presbyters,  125;  proof,  126,  163;  plu- 
rality of,  inadmissible,  127, 123;  never 
confounded  with  apostles  or  deacons, 
130;  derived  from  Greek,  131;  titles 
interchanged  with  presbyters,  126,163; 
their  qualifications,  131;  duties  the 
same  as  those  of  presbyters;   but  one 


in  a  diocese,  128, 134;  no  official  title 
in  the  Scriptures,  145 — J 61 ;  not  supe- 
rior ill  rank  to  presbyters,  145,  seq. ; 
according  to  Clement.  164;    to  Poly- 
carp,  165;    to  Justin  Martyr,  167;    to 
Irenaeus,  169;  to  Clement  of  Alexan- 
dria, 172;  to  Tertullian,  173;    merely 
presbyters,  197;  pastors  only  of  single 
parishes,  200  ;  a  bishop's  charge  origi- 
nally a  single  congregation,  200,  201  ; 
admitted  tty  Episcopalians,  201,  202; 
all  met  for  worship  in  the  same  place, 
203,  204;  personally  known  to  their 
bishop,  204,  205;   limited  in  extent, 
205;  bishop  in  country  towns,  206 — 
209;  vast  multitudes  of  them,  207,208, 
note  ;  ascendency  of  city  bishops, 252; 
identical  in  rank  with  presbyters,  ac- 
cording to  Jerome,  214—210;    to  Au- 
gustin,  218;  to  Chrysostom,  219,  220; 
to  Theodoret,  221,  222  ;    to  the  Greek 
scholiast,  222,  223  ;   to  Elias,  aichbp 
of  Crete,  and  to  Gregory  Nazienzen 
to  Isidorus  Hispalensis,  223;   to  Ber 
naldus  Constant iensis,  to  pope  Urban 
to  Gratian,  to  Nicholas  Tudeschus,224 
to  J.  P.  Launcelot,andtoGieseler,225 
origin  of  theirdistinction  from  presby 
ters,  causes  of  their  increasing  ascen 
dency,  254—257;   called  priests,  257 
their  authority  yielded  by  silent  con' 
sent,  253 ;  mildly  exercised  at  first, 259: 
authority  increased  by  councils,  267 
bishops  in  the  city,  their  pre-eminence 
272;    tyranny  over  the  clergy,  274 
hold  the  revenues  of  the  church,  276 
power  over  the  clergy  ;  278  ;  vast  ac 
cumulation  of  their  wealth, 285:  means 
of  carrying  their  measures,  290;  divine 
rights  of  295-298  ;  their  intolerance, 
290 ;  their  pride,  301 ;  their  ignorance, 
303 

C. 

Campbell  on  the  Episcopate  of  Timothy 
and  Titus,  156 

Canon  of  Valencia,  69 

Carthaee.  discipline  by  the  church  of, 
100-102 

Causae  ecclesiasticae,  283 

Catechetical  instructions  favor  Episco- 
pacy, 270 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


429 


Catholics,  multitude  of  their  bishops, 
207 

Chalcedon,  council,  69 

Chorepiscopus   251 

Christ,  his  example, 30 ;  his  instructions, 
29;  hi3spiril,29;  worshipped  as  clivin« 
in  primiiive  psalmody,  365.  366 

Christianity,  rapid  spread  of,24f^;  suffers 
no  alliance  with  the  stale,  306 

Christians,  styled  Jews,  40 

Chrysosiom  chosen  bishop,  63;  on  bish- 
ops, 128 

Church,  primitive,  first  formation,  25: 
addressed  by  the  apostles,  32  3  ? ;  mod- 
eled after  the  synagogue,  35.  39 — 46; 
according  to  Neander,  41  ;  Vitringa, 
43;  Whaiely.43;  name  derived  from 
synagogue,  40;  kept  pure,  84;  arelig- 
gious  society,  for  religious  ends,  228; 
no  connection  with  state  governments, 
but  adapted  to  any,  229;  restraints 
upon  the  clergy,  230;  guarded  against 
sectarianism,"231  ;  gave  scope  to  min- 
isterial zeal,  232;  p'reserved  harmony 
in  the  clergy,  232 ;  formed  an  efficient 
ministry,  233  ;  made  an  efficient  laity, 
235;  suited  to  our  free  institutions, 
233;  sovereignty  destroyed,  282;  be- 
gins to  inherit  property  by  will,  284  ; 
corruptions  of,  287 

Church  government  popular,  25,  33,  227 ! 
simple,  26.  23,  46,  52;  changed,  78' 
311;  churchandstateunited,  292— 294 

Church,  "  holy  catholic,"  213 

Churches,  form  alike.  61  ;  bond  of  union 
in  the  apostles,  150  ;  care  of  them  by 
the  apostle,  151 ;  apostolical,  their 
ascendency,  247 — 252 

Clemens,  the  Evangelist.  157 

Clement  of  Rome,  cited,  65,  164 

Clergy,  nominations  in  elections,  67; 
opposed  by  the  people.  72  ;  deposed  by 
the  church,  105:  discipline  by  them, 
114  ;  not  prosecuting  officers  in  the 
Church,  120;  two  orders.  124  125,127; 
subject  to  restraint,  230.  231  ;  de- 
pressed by  the  bishop,  274;  unjust 
privileges,  283;  distinctions  observed 
with  care,  289;  party  spirit  of,  290; 
eycnphancy  of,  291  ;  civil  and  ecclesi- 
astical powers,  292 ;  appeals  to  the 
emperor,  293;  mercenary  spirit,  294; 
claim  divine  right,  295—298;  perse- 
cuting spirit,  293 

College  of  presbyters,  20,  253 

Collection  sent  by  Saul,  146 

Conder,  on  ordination,  141 

Confederation  of  the  church,  115 

Congregation,  meaning  of  44 

Congregational  singing,  378;  in  Germa- 
ny. 379 

Consignat,  173 

Constantinople,  council,  69 

Cornelius,  chosen  bishop.  69 

Correspondence  of  the  churches  &  bish- 
ops, 269 

Council  nf  the  churches  with  the  apos- 
tles, 33 

Councils,  their  authority  denied.  52;  at 
Jerusalem,  135;   result  not  by  James, 


136;   their  influence  in  forming  Epis- 
copal government,  265 — 268 
Cyprian  on  elections,  67,  69 ;   on  disci- 
pline by  the  church,  88 

D. 

Daille  on  elections,  68 

Deacons  chosen  by  the  church,  34,  57; 
their  office,  124:  induction  to  office, 
140;  distinguished  from  presbyters  and 
bishops,  145,  163 

Declension,  religious,  caused  by  Episco- 
pacy, 305 

Delegates  sent  by  the  churches,  33,  58 ; 
their  character,  58 

Delegation  from  Antioch  to  Jerusalem, 
135,  147 

Delegatus  ecclesiae,  159 

Delit~zsch,  Dr.,  on  the  angel  of  the  chh, 159 

zliay.ovoi,  124,  167 

Dioce.~an  Episcopacy.  265 — 278;  disfran- 
chises the  laity.  272;  destroys  the  dis- 
cipline of  the  church.  278 

Discipline  by  the  church.  34.  36.  37,  88; 
argument  from  Scripture,  89;  from  the 
early  fathers,  95;  from  ecclesiastical 
writers ;  from  analogy,  108  ;  usurped 
bv  the  priesthood,  114;  authorities, 
106—108;  at  Carthage.  100;  at  Rome, 
102;  in  the  Ea^^tern  church,  103;  right 
of  lost,  116  ;  the  right  inherent  in  the 
church,  118;  advantages  of,  118;  not 
punitive,  118;  neglected  in  the  Epis- 
copal church.  121,122,  304;  moral  effi- 
cacy of  it,  123;  administered  by  bish- 
ops, 269,  273;  destroyed,  278 

Disciplina  Arcani,  269;  is  an  argument 
against  a  liturgy,  347 

Disfranchisement  of  the  laity,  282 

Disputes  decided  hy  tiie  church,  33 

Di\'ine  right.  71,  295—298;  guidance,77 

Donatists^  multitude  of  their  bishops. 207 

Du  Pin  on  discipline  by  the  church. 106; 
on  primitive  Episcopacy,  205 — 208 

Duties  of  bishop  and  presbyter  identical, 
133 

E. 

Edinburgh  Review,  on  apostolical  suc- 
cession, 211— 213 

Hyso;jai,,  123 

Hyov/uevoi,  124 

Elections  by  the  church,  34,  35,  53,  54; 
loss  of,  70—81 ;  of  an  aposi  le,  55  ;  by 
the  brethren,  according  to  Mosheim— 
Neander,  Grossman,  Rbhr,  56  ;  Chry- 
scstom,57;  of  the  deacons.  57;  of  the 
delegates.  58;  of  the  presbyters,  59; 
usual  mode  of,  63  ;  mode  of  resistance 
by  the  bishops,  73 ;  secular  influence, 
74;  tumultuous  proceedings — efforts 
to  correct  them,  75;  controlled  by  the 
bishops.  76;  canonical,  apostolical,  80; 
right  of  every  church.  81  ;  preserves 
balance  ofiifluence,  81  ;  foundation  of 
religions  liberty,  82  ;  safeguard  of  the 
ministry,  84;  of  the  church,  85;  pro- 
motes mutual  endearments  betweea 
pastor  and  people.  S6  ;  produces  an  ef- 
ficient ministry,  87 


430 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Emperors,  Christian,  mistaken  efforts  to 
exieiid  Chrlsiianily.  305,  3U6 

Episcopacy,  primitive,  200.  See  iiishops. 
illustrated.  195—21-1;  frtliacious  rea- 
soniii"?  of.  209  ;  riseof,  23i;  causes  of 
it,  247—260;  summary  of  its  rise,  257 
— 259  ;  iiitroJuclion  into  this  country, 
260,  261  :  iinti-ret)ublican  characieris- 
tics,  262.  26.3,  316;  growih  m  this 
country,  263,  261 ;  illustrates  the  rise 
of  ancient  Episcopacy,  261;  divine 
right  of,  295—293;  introduced  irr^iigi- 
ous  inen  into  th(!  ministry,  301  ;  origin 
of,  in  ambition,  313;  oppressive  to  the 
laity,  117.272,  233,  313;  creates  un- 
just distinctions  among  the  clergy, 
314 ;  e.xcites  bad  passions,  414 ;  in- 
tolerant. 315;  impairs  the  efficacy  of 
preacliing,  355,  397,  400,  403—406: 
fails  to  preserve  the  unity  of  the  chh., 
406;  its  tendency  to  superstition,  418; 
encourasres  tlie  idea  of  a  vicarious  re- 
ligion, 419:  encourages  a  disposition 
to  substitute  the  outward  form  for  the 
inward  spirit  of  religion,  421,  422 

Episcopal  concessions  on  names  of  bish- 
op and  presbyter.  144 

Episcopalians  concede  the  identity  of 
bishops  and  presbyters,  144;  the  va- 
lidity of  preshyterian  ordination.  191  — 
196:  unsupported  by  argument.  226; 
hindrance  to  ministerial  usefulness',. 
234,  235;  wanting  in  liberality,  237 

"Enianonov,  m,  126,  163 

'EnKTHonovPTsg,  128 

^'EcpOQOt,  163 

Eraclius,  chosen  bishop,  63 

Eustathius  chosen  bishop,  68 

Excommunication  by  the  church — by 
the  bishops,  114 

F. 

Fellowship  of  the  churches,  48 ;  encour- 
aged by  the  apostles,  150;  interrupted 
by  Episcopacy 

Forms  of  prayer  opposed  to  the  spirit  of 
Christianity,  319;  to  the  example  of 
Chri-;t  and  the  apostles,  321 ;  unautho- 
rized by  Christ  and  the  apostles,  323  ; 
contrary  to  the  simplicity  of  primitive 
worship  329;  unknown  in  the  primi- 
tive church.  333 ;  opposed  to  gospel 
freedom,  and  the  example  and  instruc- 
tions of  Christ  and  the  apostles,  333  — 
336:  opposed  to  the  simplicity  of 
primitive  worship,  333— 346;  at  first 
indited  by  any  one,  317;  prepared  for 
the  ignorant,  318;  not  adapted  to  the 
desires  of  the  worshipper,  352;  weari- 
some by  repetition,  353;  not  in  har- 
mony with  the  subjectof  discourse, 354 


Gangra.  council,  237 

Gifts,  miraculous,  141 

Government  of  the  church  by  the  mem- 
bers of  it,  103  ;  changes  through  which 
it  passed.  311 

Guidance,  divine,  claimed  by  the  bish- 
ops, 115,  117 


H. 

Hall,  Robert,  on.church  and  state,  292 

Hands,  laying  on  of,  140 

Harmony  m  the  cliurch,  27 

Hawes'-Tribute,  240 

Hegesippus,  character  of  James,  148 

Heresies  punished  With  great  severity, 
299;  greatly  increased.  300 

Hieraichy,  origin  of.  245;  further  de- 
velopment, 265 — 278;  metropolitan, 
279;  influence  of  on  the  laity — on  the 
clergy— on  moral  state  of  the  chh.,  300 

Hilary  on  primitive  worship.  330 

Homilies  in  tbe  primitive  cliurch.  387; 
discourses  of  Peter,  358;  of  Paul,  389; 
characteristics  of  their  preaching, 390; 
homilies  in  Greek  church,  character-- 
istics,  396—398;  causes  of  the  forming 
of  this  style,  398— 401;  homilies  in  the 
Latin  clmrch,  401  ;  causes  productive 
of  their  characteristics,  403 

H.  W.  D.  of  Philadelphia,  preface,  190 

Hymns  of  human  composition  forbidden, 
374 

I. 

Identity  of  bishops  and  presbyters,  124. 
See  under  each  term,  bishop  and  pres- 
byter. - 

Ignatius,   his   epistles  suspected,    197; 
interpolated,  198;  unsatisfactory,  198, 
199  ;  do  hot  support  Episcopacy,  199,, 
200 

Imposition  of  hands,  140,  143 

Independence  of  the  churches,'  35,57 — . 
150;  asserted  by  Mosheim,  49;  by 
Barrow  and  Dr.  Burton,  50;  by  Riddle, 
51  ;  by  Whately,  23 

Innocent  III,  arrogcint  pretensions,  80 

Instrumental  music  in  churches,  375 

Interventors  in  elections.  75 

Irenaeus.  identity  of  bishops  and  presby- 
ters, 167—171 

J 

James  not  bishop  at  Jenisalem;  136,  146; 
reasons  for  his  residence  there — his 
character,  14S 

Jerome  on  elections,  69;  on  bishops  and 
presbyters,  l32,  214—216 

Jerusalem,  council  at,  135;   seat  of  the 

Christian  religion,  148 
Judsment,  private,  right  of,  infringed, 

287 
Jury  of  the  church,  trial  by,  119 
Justin  Martyr,  cited,  167;  on-primitive 
worship  and  ordinances,  338—343 


Laity  baptize.  138;  disfranchised,  272; 
oppressed.  273 

Laity  and  clergy,  balance  of  power  be- 
tween, 81  ;  d^isfranchised,  117;  injus- 
tice to  them,  2S3,  313;  loss  of  their 
spiritual  privileges,  285;  indifferent  to 
the  interests  of  the  chuich.  2S6 :  to 
their  Christian  fellowship  256,  287; 
lose  control  of  revenues,  284 

Lapsed,  censure  of,  114 

Laws  enacted  by  the  people,  49,  109; 
right  taken  from  them,  11.5 

Legatus  ecclesiae,  158 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


431 


Lettera  addressed  to  the  church,  110; 

missive  by  the  church,  111 
Liberty,  religinus,  loss  of,  81 
Litigations  settled  by  the  church,  37 
Liturgy  formed  by  e.ich  bushop,  49 ;    un- 
kncnvii  in  the  prinjilive  church,  319, 
eeq.,  336  ;   no  relics  of  any,  nor  record 
of  such  as  found  at   this  time,  337; 
appeal  is  made  to   tradition   for    such 
forms  as   belong  to  tlie  liturgy,  337, 
333;  Hiurgies  the  production  of  a  cor- 
rupt age.  349;    for  arv  ignorant  priest- 
hood, 350;    encroach   upon  the  time 
which  should  be  alioiled  lo  tlie  sermon, 
355;  exalt  the  inventions  of  man  above 
the  word  of  God,  356;  English  liturgy 
of  ppisli  origin,   357;   erroneous  in 
doctrine,  359 
Lord's  prayer  not  a  prescribed  form,  324; 
unknown  as  such  by  the  apostles  and 
apostolical  fathers.  324—326;  summa- 
ry conclusions  respecting  ii,  327— 329; 
unsuited  to  the  Christian  dispensation, 
323;  varied  phraseology,  323 
Luther,  a  reformer  by  his  musical  pow- 
ers, 383 


IkSd,  157,  158 


M 


Mareolis.  supplied  by  presbyters,  251 
Mark,  the  Evangelist,  J 57 
Martin,  of  Tours,  chosen  bishop,  73 
Mason,  Dr.   on  equality  of  bishops  and 

presbvters,  l29 ;  cUed,  136 
Maximianists,  their  bishops,  207 
Melatius.  chosen  bishop,  6S 
Milton's  Prose  VVorks  cited,  150,  168 
Ministers,  none  superior  to  presbyters, 

145 
Mosheim,  on  elections   by  the  church, 

61.  See  Inde.x  of  Authorities. 
Metropolitan  Governineni,  established, 

279  ;  means  of  ii.s  establishment,-280— 

282 ;  results,  232 
N 
Neander,  on  the  two  great  parties  in  the 

church.  332    See  Ifi'lex  ofAuthoriti.es. 
Nice,  Council  on  Elections,  68 
Nice,  Church  of  jurisdiction,  251 


Offices  of  clersy  multiplied,  288,  289 

Officers  of  the^  church,  36- 

Onderdonk,  on  eciuality  of  bishopg  and 
presbyters,  144;  on  office  of  Timothy, 
153 

Orders,  but  two  in  the  prie'^thood,  163 

Ordinati(.n  by  presbyters,  139—176;  im- 
.port  of  it,  141,  note;  right  of  presby- 
ters according  to  Firinilian.  1/6;  lo 
Irenaeus  177';  to  Hilary,  178—181; 
to  Jerome,  132—186;  to  Eutychiu^  of 
Alexan-.ria,  186—188;  to  Planck.  183, 
to  Neander,  189;  to  Blondell,  189;  to 
the  Canons,  139;  to  Dr.  Miller,  190, 
191  ;  various  Episcopal  authorities, 
191—196;  byCranmer,l91  ;  Necessarv 
Erudition,  192;  Whiltaker.Usher,l92; 
Slillingrtjel,  Ftubes,  King,  Christian 
Observer,  193;  Goode,  194;  Bowdler, 
196,   Summary   194,   J  95;   Clarkson, 


210—211;   by  Metropolitan  281;   by 

Divine  Kight,  297 
Organs  in  church  music,  375 
Origen,  as  a  preacher,  396 
'  Ou)j  dufufj'ig  auru,  of  Justin,  340 
Overseers,  name,  36 


Papal  Government,  309 

Parochial  bishops,  52;  parochial  system, 
249 

Pastor,  not  a  prosecuting  officer,  120 

Pastures,  163 

Palres  ecclesiae,  163 

Patriarchal  Government,  307 

Paul  and  Barnabas, ordainingpresbytera, 
61;  in  council  at  Jerusalem,  136; 
his  ordination,  143 

Peace  of  the  church,  by  discipline,  119 

Pearson,  on  elections,  63 

Penance,  system  of  114;  promotes  the 
bishop's  power,  271- 

Penitents,  restored  by  the  church,  103 

People  overreached  in  elections,  77  ;  peo- 
ple g  vern  them.selves  in  everything, 
103;  rights  abridged  by  councils,  267 

Planck  on  divine  fight,  295— 298.  See 
Index  of  Authorities. 

UoifJuli'M,  134 

Polycarp,  cited  165 

Pontificale  Romanum,  69 

Po|)e  of  Rome,  his  ascendency  estab- 
lished, 310 

Praeposili,  163 

Praesides,  prae'sidentes,  praesule^,  163 

Prayers  of  the  primitive  church.  319; 
See  forms  of  prayer,  prayers  of  Christ, 
and  the  apostles  extempore,  321,  322, 
340;  Lord's  prayer.323;  allHude  in, 340. 

Presbyters,  their  office,  36,  125;  choice 
of  them  59  ;  by  the  church,  61  ;  titles, 
124  ;  equality  with  bishop-<,  124—162  ; 
addresj-ed  as  bishops,  126  ;  term  de- 
r-ived  from  Jews,  131  ;  appellations 
interchanged  with  bishops,  126,  162;- 
qualificaiiims,  131,  166;  duties  iden- 
tical with  presbyter,  133;  teachers  of 
the  church,  134;  counsellors,  135; 
administer  ordinances,  136;  ordain, 
139;  distinguished  from  deacons,  163; 
equal  to  bishop.-i. according  to  Clemenl, 
164;  to  Polycarp,  165;  to  Justin 
Martyr,  167;  to  Irenaeus,  169;  to 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  172;  lo  Ter- 
tullian  173;  ascendency  of  those  in  a 
city,  2")2;  their  right  to  ordain,  176; 
according  to  Firmilian,  176  ;  to  Hila- 
ry, 178—181;  to  Jerome,  182—186; 
to  F.ui>chius.  of  Alexandria,  186—  188; 
to  Planck.  188;  to  Neander.  189;  to 
Blondell,  139;  to  Dr.  Miller.  190  191; 
to  various  Episcopal  authorities,  191 
—  197  ;  according  to  Jerome,  214— 218 ; 
toCI'.rvsostom.  219,220;  to  Theodoret, 
221,  222;  lo  the  Greek  Schtdinst  222-, 
223;  It)  Elias.  of  Crete,  and  to  Gregory 
Naz  .223;  to  Isidortis  to  Bariialflus, 
to  Pope  Urban.  224;  lo  Nicholas 
Tudeschus.  to  J  P.  Launce.lot,  and  to 
Gieseler,  225;  College  of,  253. 


432 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


nqeu^vTBQOi,  163 

President  of  presbyters,  253 

Priesthood,  Jevvisti  disowned  by  the 
church,  45;  divine  right  of,  71 

Priesthood,  discipline  by  114 

Primate,  ^c  ,  name  of  metropolitan, 281 

Priests,  bishops  so  called,  257  ;  claim  to 
be  divinely  appointed,  295 

IJguedQot,  163 

IlQOEaxthg,  153,  167,  168 

IlQOSdTQOTEg,  159,163 

IlQoicrT(!iftsvot>,  124,  163 

IjQoaTdTai,  163 

riQO(pT]Tat,  158 

Protest  against  secular  power,  79;  of 
Free  church  in  Scotland,  83, 

Psalmody  of  the  primitive,  361  ;  the 
first  disciples  indited  and  sang  songs. 
363;  fragments  of  such  in  the  New 
Testament,  364;  songs  of  primitive 
Christians,  365;  Christ  the  subject 
of  their  songs,  366;  one  primitive 
hymn  remains,  367  ;  mode  of  singing, 
36S ;  no  instrumental  music,  369;  re- 
sponsive singing  not  general ;  all  the 
congregation  sang,  370;  delight  of 
primitive  Christians  in  it,  371  ;  power 
of  ancient  psalmody,  372  ;  changes  in 
ancient  psalmody,  373 ;  claimed  by 
the  clergy,  377-;  means  of  propagating 
doctrinal  truth,  381  ;  of  moral  disci- 
pline, 384;  importance  of  simplicity 
in  it,  385 

Puritans,  their  wisdom  and  piety  239, 
— 242 ;  their  legacy  to  us,  241  ;  defec- 
tion from  their  religion,  243 

R 

Receive  the  Holy  Ghost,  origin  of  the 
term,  298 

Republic  of  the  church,  48 

Revenues  of  church  held  by  bishops, 
276,  277;  taken  from  the  laity,  284 

Riddle,  on  elections,68;  on  presbyterian 
ministry,  138 

Rightdivine  of  bishops, origin  of,  295,298 

Roman  Government,  tolerated  all  re- 
ligions, 27 

Romish  church  on  equality  of  bishops 
and  presbyters,  144;  corruption  of 311 

Ruler  of  the  synagogue,  45  ;  his  duties, 
158,  160 

S 

Sacrament,  howadministered  primitive- 
ly, 339 

Scottish  Free  church,  83 

Scriptural  exposition, importance  of,  393 
-396 

Secular  music  corrupts  the  worship  of 
the  church,  375 

Secular  power,  interference,  78 

Seniores,  seniores  plcbis,  163 

Shepherd,  office  of  bishop  and  presbyter, 
134 

Silas,  the  Evangelist,  157 

Simonis,  on  discipline  by  the  church,  106 


Singers  in  a  choir  in  the  fourth  century, 
374  " 

"liny  r\n\i/-  iss,  159,  leo,  lei. 

Sovereignty  of  the  church  destroyed,'282 
Stuart,  Prof,  on  the  angel  of  the  church, 

157 
Submission,  passive  doctrine  of,  116 
Succession, apostolical  absurdity  of,  145, 

211,212;  origin  of  derived  from  the 

Komish  church,  296 
Suffrase, universal,  60;  right  of,  81.  See 

Elections. 
Sycopliaiicy  of  the  clergy,  291 
Sylvanus,  the  Evangelist,  157 
Synagogue,   endeared   to   the  Jew,  40; 

ruler,  45  ;  popular  in  government,  46 


Temple  service  unsuited  to  church, 39 ; 
discarded,  45 

Teriullian,  discipline  by  the  chutch,  98  ; 
on  baptism,  by  laiiy,  138;  on  primi- 
tive order,  331  ;  on  primitive  worship 
and  ordinances,  343—346 

Timothy,  supposed  bishop,  144;  not 
bishop  of  Ephesus,  152;  Timothy,  an 
evangelist,  153,  155  ;  travels  with  and 
for  the  apostle,  154  ;  entreated  to  re- 
main at  Ephesus,  155 

Titus,  supposed  bishop,  144;  not  bishop 
at  Crne,  156 

Tractarian  movement  admired  by  Cath- 
olics, 360 

Tractarians  assign  origin  of  Liturgies 
to  the  fifth  century,  350 

Trajan,on  songs  of  priraitiveChristians, 
365 

Truth,  religious,  its  simplicity  gives  it 
power,  351 

Tumults  of  elections,  75 

U 

Unity  of  the  church  unknown  in  apos- 
tolical age,  47  ;  absurd,  213  ;  influence 
in  establishing  the  Episcopal  govern- 
ment, 268 

Usage,  apostolical  111 

Usurpation  of  the  bishops  in  elections, 
in  discipline,  117 

Valens,  presbyter,  defection  of,  97 

Valesius,nn  discipline  by  thechurch,  106 

Vicarious  priesthood,  411—422 

Visiters  at  elections,  75 

Wealth  of  the  clergy,  284.  285 

Whately  on  omissions  in  Scripture, 335, 
336 

Whitby,  Dr.,  on  the  office  of  Timothy 
and  Titus,  156 

"Wiseman,  Dr.,  on  the  Tractarian  move- 
ment, 360 

Worship  of  the  church  simple,  38,  319, 
330;  does  not  tolerate  disorder,  321, 
331  ;  primitive  and  ordinances,338,347 

Xugla^aTtty  141 

XeiQOTOvijdelg,  &c.,  58,  60 

XeiQOTOvsXVf  meaning  of,  62 

XsiQowvrjaavTsg,  140 


VALUABLE  WORKS 

PUBLISHED  AND  FOR  SALE  BY 

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ELEMENTS   OF   MORAL   SCIENCE. 

BY   FRANCIS  WAYLAND,    D.    D. 

President  of  Brown  University,  and  Professor  of  Moral  Philosophy. 

Twenty-Fourth  Thousand. 

|j3==  This  work  has  been  extensively  and  fav  jrably  reviewed  in  the 
leading  periodicals  of  the  day,  and  has  already  been  adopted  as  a  class- 
book  in  most  of  the  collegiate,  theological,  and  academical  institutions 
of  the  country. 

"The  work  of  Dr.  Way  land  has  arisen  gradually  from  the  necessity  of 
correcting  the  false  principles  and  fallacious  reasonings  of  Paley.  It  is  a 
radical  mistake,  in  the  education  of  youth,  to  permit  any  book  to  be  used 
by  students  as  a  text-book,  which  contain  erroneous  doctrines,  especially 
when  these  are  fundamental,  and  tend  to  vitiate  the  whole  system  of 
morals.  We  have  been  greatly  pleased  with  the  method  which  President 
Wayland  has  adopted :  he  goes  back  to  the  simplest  and  most  fundamental 
principles;  and,  in  the  statement  of  his  views,  be  unites  perspicuity  with 
conciseness  and  precision.  In  ail  the  author's  leading  fundamental  prin- 
ciples we  entirely  concur." — Bib.  Rep.  and  Theol.  Review. 

From  Rev.  Wilbur  Fisk,  Pres.  of  the  Wesleyan  University. 

"I  have  examined  it  with  great  satisfaction  and  interest.  The  work 
was  greatly  needed,  and  is  w^ell  executed.  Dr.  Wayland  deserves  the 
grateful  acknowledsments  and  liberal  patronage  of  the  public.  I  need  say 
nothin?  further  to  "express  my  high  estimate  of  the  work,  than  that  we 
shall  immediately  adopt  it  as  a  texc-book  in  our  university." 

From  Hon.  James  Knnt,  late  Chancellor  of  New  York. 

"The  work  has  been  read  by  me  attentively  and  thoroughly,  and  I  think 
very  highly  of  it.  The  author  himself  is  one  of  the  most  estimable  of  men, 
and  I  do  not  know  of  any  ethical  treatise,  in  which  our  duties  to  God,  and 
to  our  fellow-men,  are  laid  down  with  more  precision,  slm.plicity,  clear- 
ness, energy,  and  truth." 

"This  is  a  new  work  on  morals,  for  academic  use,  and  we  welcome  it 
with  much  satisfaction.  It  is  the  result  of  several  years'  reflection  and 
experience  i  n  teaching,  on  the  part  of  its  justly  distinguished  author ;  and  if 
it  is  not  perfectly  what  we  could  wish,  yet,  in  the  most  important  respects, 
it  supplies  a  want  which  has  been  extensively  felt.  It  is,  we  think,  sub- 
stantially sound  in  its  fundamental  principles;  and  being  comprehensi\^ 
and  elementary  in  its  plan,  and  adapted  to  the  purposes  of  instruction,  it 
■will  be  gladly  adopted  by  those  who  have  for  a  long  time  been  dissatisfied 
with  the  existing  works  of  Paley."— Z,i^  and  Theol.  Review. 

1  1 


THE  ELEMENTS  OF 

MORAL  SCIENCE,   ABRIDGED. 

ADAPTED  TO  THE  USE  OF  SCHOOLS  AND  ACADEMIES. 

Eighteenth  Thousa7id. 

03"  The  attention  of  Teachers  and  School  Committees  is  invited  to 
this  valuable  work.  It  has  received  the  unqualified  approbation  of  all 
•who  have  examined  it;  and  it  is  believed  to  be  admirably  adapted  to 
exert  a  wholesome  influence  on  the  minds  of  the  young,  and  lead  to  the 
formation  of  correct  moral  principles. 

'•  Dr.  Wayland  has  published  an  abridgment  of  his  work  for  the  use  of 
schools.  Of  this  step  we  can  hardly  speak  too  highly.  It  is  more  than 
time  that  the  study  of  Mural  Philosophy  shQuld  be  introduced  inlo  all  our 
institutions  of  education.  We  are  happy  to  see  the  way  so  auspiciously 
opened  for  such  an  introduction.  It  has  been  '-not  merely  abridged,  but 
also  re-icritten."  We  cannot  but  regard  the  labor  as  ail  well  bestowed. 
The  difficulty  of  choosing  words  and  examples  so  as  to  make  them  intel- 
ligible and  interesting  to  the  child,  is  very  great.  The  puccess  with 
which  Dr.  Wayland  appears  to  have  overcome  it,  is,  in  the  highest  degree, 
gratifying." — North  American  Rexiew. 

"We  speak  that  we  do  know,  when  we  express  our  high  estimate  of 
Dr.  Wayland's  ability  in  teaching  Moral  Philosophy;  whether  orally  or 
by  the  book.  Having  listened  to'his  instructions,  in  this  interesting  de- 
partment, we  can  attest  how  lofty  are  the  principles,  how  exact  and  severe 
the  argumentation,  how  appropriate  and  strong  the  illustrations  which 
characterize  his  system  and  enforce  it  on  the  mind." — Chr.  Witness. 

"The  work  of  which  this  volume  is  an  abridgment,  is  well  known  as 
one  of  the  best  and  most  complete  works  on  Moral  Philosophy  extant, — 
and  is  in  a  fair  way  of  superseding  Paley,  as  a  text-book  in  our  higher 
seminaries.  The  author  is  well  known  as  one  of  the  most  profound  schol- 
ars of  the  age.  That  the  study  of  Moral  Science,  a  science  which  teaches 
goodness,  should  be  a  branch  of  education,  not  only  in  our  colleges,  but  in 
our  schools  and  aaqdemies,  we  believe  will  not  be  denied.  The  abridge- 
ment of  this  work  seems  to  us  admirably  calculated  for  the  purpose,  and 
we  hope  it  will  be  extensively  applied  to  the  purposes  for.whic.h  ii  is  in- 
tended."— Mercantile  Journal. 

"  So  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  examine  the  two  works  of  Dr.  Way- 
land,  we  must  say.  that  we  are  quite  as  well  pleased  with  the  smaller  as 
with  the  larger.  The  work,  the  author  himself  says,  has  been  not  merely 
abridged,  it  has  been  re-icritteji.  It  is  written  in  a  style  well  suited 
to  the  comprehension  of  youth.  The  illustrations  are  apt  and  striking. 
The  work  is  divided  into  short  chapters,  as  it  should  be,  to  suit  for  a  class 
book  for  the  young.  Each  chapter  is  followed  by  questions  for  the  aid  of 
the  teacher,  rather  than  for  the  learner."— CV^r.  Secretary,  Hartford. 

"We  hail  the  abridgment  as  admirably  adapted  to  supply  ibe  deficiency 
which  has  long  been  felt  in  common  school  education, — the  study  of  moral 
obligation.  Let  the  child  early  be  taught  the  relations  it  eustains  to  man 
and  to  its  Maker,  the  first  acquainting  it  with  the  duties  owed  lo  society, 
the  second  with  the  duties  owed  to  Gnd.  and  who  can  foretell  how  many 
a  sad  and  disastrous  overthrow  of  character  will  be  prevented,  and  how 
elevated  and  pure  will  be  the  sense  of  integrity  and  virtue?"— ITfe.  Gaz. 

"  It  is  a  work  of  the  highest  and  purest  order  of  intellect.  It  is  meta- 
physics reduced  to  practical  common  sense,  and  made  subservient  to 
Christianity.  The  original  work  has  acquired  for  its  profound  and  ijhilo- 
B^phic  author,  a  large  addition  to  the  intellectual  reputation,  and  i  be  abridg- 
ment, which  is  entirely  re-written,  compresses  the  whole  substance  in  a 
duodecimo  of  240  pages,  judiciously  adapted  to  common  understandings. 
t  -would  be  a  valuable  addition  to  our  high  schools." — Daily  Advocate' 
2 


THE 

ELEMENTS  OF   POLITICAL   ECONOMY. 

BY    FRANCIS   WAYLAND,    D.    D. 

Tenth  Thousand. 

t'3°"  This  work  is  adopted  as  a  text-book  in  many  of  our  principal 
Colleges,  and  has  an  extensive  sale. 

Extract  from  the  Preface. 

"  His  object  has  been  to  write  a  book,  wiiich  any  one  who  chooses  may 
understand.  He  has,  therefore,  labored  to  express  the  general  principles 
in  the  plainest  manner  possible,  and  to  illustrate  them  by  cases  with 
which  every  person  is  familiar.  It  has  been  to  the  author  a  source  of  re- 
gret, that  tlie  course  of  discussion  in  the  following  pages,  has  unavoidably 
led  him  overground  which  has  frequently  been  the  arena  of  political  con- 
troversy. In  all  such  cases,  he  has  endeavored  to  state  what  seemed  to 
him  to  be  truth,  without  fear,  favor,  or  affection.  He  is  conscious  to 
himself  of  no  bias  towards  any  party  whatever,  and  he  thinks  that  he  who 
will  read  the  whole  work,  will  be  convinced  that  he  has  been  influenced 
by  none." 

THE  ELEMENTS  OF 

POLITICAL    ECONOMY,   ABRIDGED. 

ADAPTED  TO  THE  USE  OF  SCHOOLS  AND  ACADEMIES. 
Fifth  Tlwusand. 

The  success  which  has  attended  the  abridgment  of  "  The  Elements 
of  Moral  Science,"  has  induced  the  author  to  prepare  the  following 
abridgniKnt  of  "  The  Elements  of  Political  Economy."  In  this  case, 
as  in  the  other,  the  work  has  been  wholly  re-written,  and  an  attempt  has 
been  rnide  to  adapt  il  to  th-i  attainments  of  youth. 

"The  ori7inal  work  of  the  author,  on  Political  Economy,  has  already 
been  noticed  on  our  paares;  and  the  present  abridgment  stands  in  no 
need  of  a  recommendation  from  us.  We  may  be  permitted,  however, 
to  say,  thit  both  the  rising  and  risen  generations  are  deeply  indebted  to 
Dr.  Wayland,  for  the  skill  and  power  he  has  put  forth  to  bring  a  highly 
important  subject  distinctly  before  them,  within  such  narrow  limits, 
Th.Tiigh  "abridged  for  the  use  of  academies,"  it.deserves  to  be  introduced 
into  every  private  family,  and  to  be  studied  by  every  man  who  has  an 
interest  in  the  wealth  and  prosperity  of  his  country.  It  is  a  subject  little 
understood,  even  practically,  by  thousands,  and  still  less  understood  theo- 
retically. It  is  to  be  hoped,  this  will  form  a  class  book,  and  be  faithfully 
studied  in  our  academies;  and  that  it  will  find  its  way  into  every  family 
library;  not  there  to  be  shut  up  unread,  but  to  aiford  rich  material  for 
thought  and  discussion  in  the  family  circle.  It  is  fitted  to  enlarge  the 
mind,  to  purify  the  judgment,  to  correct  erroneous  popular  impressions, 
and  assist  every  man  in  forming  opinions  of  public  measures,  which  will 
abide  the  lest  of  time  and  experience." — Boston  Recorder. 

"An  abridgment  of  this  clear,  common  sense  work,  designed  for  the 
use  of  academies,  is  ju>t  published.  We  rejoice  to  see  such  treatises 
spread! nar  among  the  pnople:  and  we  urge  all  who  would  be  intelligent 
freemen,  to  read  them."— .Veic  York  Transcript. 

"  We  can  say,  with  safety,  that  the  topics  are  well  selected  and  ar- 
ranged; that  the  author's  name  is  a  guarantee  for  more  than  usual  excel- 
lence.    We  wish  it  an  extensive  circulation." — New  York  Observer. 

"It  is  well  adapted  to  high  schools,  and  embraces  the  soundest  system  of 
repiijlican  Falitical  Economy  of  any  treatise  extant." — Daily  Advocate. 
3 


CLASS  EOOK  OF  NATURAL  THEOLOGY; 

Or,  the  Testimony  of  Nature  to  the  Being,  Perfections,  and  Government 

of  God.   By  Rev.  Henry  Fergus.   Revised,  enlarged,  and  adapted 

to  Paxton's  Illustrationa;  with  Notes,  selected  and  original, 

Biographical  Notices,  and  a  Vocabulary  of  Scientific 

Terms.    By  Rev.  Charles  Henry  Alden,  A.  M., 

Principal  of  the  Philadelphia  High  School 

for  Young  Ladies.     Third  edition. 

"  We  are  glad  to  see  this  work  of  Fergus  brought  before  the  public  with 
advantages  likely  to  engage  attention,  and  sure  to  promote  it.^  usefulness. 
We  are  especially  pleased,  that  this  has  been  done  by  one  wliose  reputation 
and  devotion  in  the  cause  of  female  education  will  be  a  sufficient  recom- 
mendation of  it  to  those  whom  it  seems  to  have  been  his  particular  design 
to  benefit.  A  growing  attention  to  this  branch  of  education,  and  consid- 
erable improvements  in  it,  have  of  late  appeared.  The  book,  as  now  pre- 
sented, is  better  fitted  for  a  class-book  on  natural  theology,  than  any  with 
which  we  are  acquainted.  The  style  of  it  is  free  and  easy,  yet  concise, 
and  withal  exceedingly  chaste  and  classical,— the  production  of  a  well-dis- 
ciplined, well-stored,  and  pure  mind.  The  author  treats  of  the  origin  of 
the  world,  the  evidences  of  design  in  nature,  the  perfections  of  the  Deity. 
These,  and  his  various  topics,  are  illustrated  by  Paxton's  admirable  plates, 
heretofore  published  in  connection  with  Dr.  Paley's  work  on  the  same 
subject.  These,  together  with  the  notes  and  explanations  of  the  American 
editor,  are  important  additions,  and  contain  much  valuable  information. 
Besides  these,  there  is  inserted  a  lecture  by  Dr.  Mitchell,  of  Philadelphia, 
on  "llie  wisdom  of  God  in  the  formation  of  water,"  which  is  consonant 
with  the  general  spirit  of  the  work,  and  abounds  in  wise  and  happy  re- 
flections."— Episcopal  Recorder. 

"The  general  plan  of  the  work  is  excellent,  and  the  details,  so  far  as  we 
can  judge,  are  good.  We  take  a  delight  in  running  our  eye  over  such  a 
work  as  this;  it  reconciles  us  with  our  lot,  and  vindicates  "the  ways  of 
God  to  man."  It  serves  to  awaken  curiosity  in  the  young  student,  to 
extend  and  gratify  inquiry,  and  to  lead  him  from  the  objects  of  creatioii 
around  him,  "to  him  in  whom  we  live  and  move,  and  have  our  being." 
It  is  a  most  admirable  study  for  schools.  '  The  proper  study  of  mankind 
is  man.'" — U.  S.  Gazette. 

"  We  do  not  hesitate  to  pronounce  the  work  one  of  the  best  class  hooka 
we  have  examined.  It  must  have  an  extensive  sale."—Jour7tal  0/ Belles 
Lettres.  • 


THOUGHTS 

ON  THE  PRESENT  COLLEGIATE  SYSTEM  IN  THE  U.  S. 

BY  FRANCIS  WAYLAND,   D.  D. 

"These  Thoughts  come  from  a  source  entitled  to  very  respectful  atten- 
tion; and  as  the  author  goes  over  the  whole  ground  of  collegia  to  education, 
criticising  freely  all  the  arrangements  in  every  tlepannient^ai.d  in  all  their 
bearings,  the  book  is  very  full  of  n  alter.  We  hojie  it  will  prove  the  begin- 
ning of  a  thorough  di-^cussion.  It  is  a  noticeable  tact,  that  none,  or  iText 
to  ri^one,  of  the  reforms  that  have  been  atirn  pted  in  seme  of  our  coll^ge8 
within  fifteen  or  twenty  years,  have  succeeded.  Yet  the  public  mir.d  is 
not  very  easy  on  the  subject ;  Dr.  Wayland  is  not  sati.'^fied:  and  the  minds 
of  other  gentlemen  similarly  situated,  are  in  like  position." 
4 


YOUNG  LADIES^  CLASS  BOOK; 

A  Selection  of  Lessons  for  Reading  in  Prose  and  Verse. 

By  Ebenezer  Bailey,  A.  M.,  Principal  of 

the  Young  Ladies'  High  School,  Boston. 

Twenty-third  Stereotype  Edition. 

From  the  Pri7icipals  of  the  Public  Schools  for  Females,  Boston. 
"  Gentlemen  :— We  have  examined  the  Young  Ladies'  Class  Book 
with  interest  and  pleasure;  with  interest,  because  we  have  felt  the  want 
of  a  Reading  Book  expressly  designed  for  the  use  of  females;  and  with 
pleasure,  because  we  have  found  it  well  adapted  to  supply  the  deficiency. 
In  the  selections  for  a  Reader  designed  for  boys,  the  eloquence  of  ihe  bar, 
the  pulpit,  and  the  forum,  may  be  laid  under  heavy  contribution;  but  such 
selections,  we  conceive,  are  out  of  place  in  a  bouk  designed  for  females. 
"VVe  have  been  pleased,  therefore,  to  observe,  ihat  in  the  Young  Ladies' 
Class  Book  such  pieces  are  rare.  Tho  liightoned  morality,  the  freedom 
from  sectarianism,  the  taste,  richness,  and  adaptation  of  the  selections, 
added  to  tlie  neatnessof  its  external  appearance,  must  commend  it  to  all; 
while  the  practical  teacher  will  not  fail  to  observe  that  diversity  of  style, 
together  with  those  peculiar  points,  the  want  of  which,  few,  who  have 
not  felt,  know  how  to  supply.  Respectfully  yours, 

Abraham  Andrews, 
Charles  Fox, 
Barnum  Field, 
R  G.  Parker. 

From  the  Principal  of  the  Mount  Vernon  School,  Boston. 
"I  have  examined  with  much  interest  the  Young  Ladies'  Class  Book 
by  Mr-  Bailey,  and  have  been  very  highly  pleased  with  its  contents.  It 
is  my  intention  to  introduce  it  into  my  own  school,  as  I  regard  it  as  not 
only  remarkably  well  fitted  to  answer  its  particular  object  as  a  book  of 
exercises  in  the  art  of  elocution,  but  as  calculated  to  have  an  influence 
upon  the  character  and  conduct,  which  will  be  in  every  respect  favorable. 

Jacob  Abbott. 
From  the  Principal  of  Franklin  Seminary,  NeicMarket,  N.  H. 
"I  have  examined  with  much  satisfaction  the  Young  Ladies' Class  Book 
by  Mr.  Bailey,  and  consider  it  the  best  work  of  the  kind  extant.  Such  a 
work  has  long  been  a  desideratum,  and  I  am  happy  that  it  is  so  fully  met 
in  the  present  work;  the  happy  and  judicious  selections,  indicate  the 
chaste  spirit  which  has  so  long  distinguished  its  author,  both  as  a  teacher 
and  a  scholar.  I  earnestly  desire  that  it  may  have  a  universal  patronage. 
I  have  selected  it  for  my  school,  in  preference  to  all  others. 

Yours,  with  esteem,  Amasa  Buck. 

'•The  reading  books  prepared  for  academic  use,  are  often  unsuitable  for 
females.  They  contain  pieces  too  masculine,  too  martial,  too  abstract  and 
erudite,  and  too  little  adapted  to  the  delicacy  of  the  female  taste.  We  are 
glad,  therefore,  to  perceive  that  an  attempt  has  been  made  to  supply  the 
deficiency  ;  and  we  believe  that  the  task  has  been  faithfully  and  success- 
fully accomplished.  The  selections  are  judicious  and  chaste;  and  so  far 
as  they  have  any  moral  bearing,  appear  to  be  unexceptionable. — Educa- 
tion Reporter. 

"  We  vverc  never  so  struck  with  the  importance  of  having  reading  books 
for  female  schools,  adapted  particularly  to  that  express  purpose,  as  while 
looking  over  the  paares  of  this  selection.  The  eminent  success  of  the  com- 
piler ia  teaching  this  brinch.  to  which  vve  can  psrsonally  bear  testimony, 
is  3\i(Ti-Jeat  evidence  of  ihe  chiracter  of  the  work,  considered  as  a  selec- 
tion of  lessons  in  elocution;  they  are,  in  general,  admirably  adapted  to 
cultivate  the  amiable  and  gentle  traits  of  the  female  character,  as  well  as 
to  elevate  and  improve  the  mind." — Annals  of  Education. 
J*  5 


ROMAN    ANTiaUITIES 

AND 

ANCIENT  MYTHOLOGY. 

By  C.  K.  DILLAWAY,  A.  M., 

Late  Principal  in  the  Boston  Public  Latin  School. 

Illustrated  by  elegant  Engravings. 

Sixth  edition,  improved, 

S3~Thi3  work  is  rapidly  cnrning  into  use  all  over  our  country;  it  Is 
already  introduced  into  most  of  our  High  Schools  and  Academies,  and 
many  of  our  Colleges.  A  new  and  beautiful  edition  has  just  been 
published. 

From  the  Boston  Education  Reporter. 
"The  want  of  a  cheap  volume,,  embracing  a  succinct  account  of  ancient 
customs,  together  with  a  view  of  classical  myvViology,  has  long  been  felt. 
To  the  student  of  a  language,  some  knowledge  of  tl.c  manners,  habits,  and 
religious  feelings  of  the  people  whose  language  is  studied,  is  indispensably 
requisite.  This  knowledge  is  seldom  to  be  obtained  without  tedious  re- 
search or  laborious  investigation.  Mr.  Dillaway's  book  seems  to  have  been 
prepared  with  special  reference  to  the  wants  of  those  who  are  just  entering 
upon  a  classical  career;  and  we  deem  it  but  a  simple  act  of  justice,  to  say, 
that  it  supplies  the  want,  which,  as  we  have  before  said, has  long  been  felt. 
In  a  small  duodecimo,  of  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  pages,  he  concen- 
trates the  most  valuable  and  interesting  particulars  relating  to  Roman 
antiquity;  together  with  as  full  an  account  of  heathen  mythology  as  is 
generally  needed  in  our  highest  seminaries.  A  peculiar  merit  of  this  com- 
pilation, and  one  which  will  gain  it  admission  into  our  highly  respectable 
female  seminaries,  is  the  total  absence  of  all  allusion,  even  the  most  re- 
mote, to  the  disgusting  obscenities  of  ancient  mythology  ;  while,  at  the 
same  time,  nothin?  is  omitted  which  a  [une  mind  would  feel  interested  to 
know.  "We  recommend  the  book  as  a  valuable  addition  to  the  treatises  in 
our  schools  and  academies." 

From  Ebenezer  Bailey,  Principal  of  the  Young  Ladies'  High  School, 
Boston. 
"Having  used  Dillaway's  Roman  Antiqiiities  and  Ancient  Mythology 
in  my  school  for  several  years,  I  commend  it  to  teachers,  with  great  confi- 
dence, as  a  valuable  text-book  on  those  interesting  branches  of  education. 

E.  Bailey. 

"We  well  remember,  in  the  days  of  our  pupilage,  how  unpopular  as  a 
study  was  the  volume  of  Roman  Antiquities  introduced  in  the  academic 
course.  It  wearied  on  account  of  its  prolixity,  filling  a  thick  octavo,  and 
was  the  prescribed  task  each  afternoon  for  a  long  three  months.  It  was 
reserved  for  one  of  our  Boston  instructers  to  apply  the  condensing  appara- 
tus to  this  mass  of  crudities,  and  so  to  modernize  the  atiliqnitifs  of  tlie 
old  Romans,  as  to  make  a  befitti  ng  abridgjrent  for  schools  of  the  first  order. 
Mr.  Dillaway  has  presented  such  a  cnmpilation  as  must  be  interesting  to 
lads,  and  become  popular  as  a  text-book.  Historical  fucts  are  staled  with 
great  simplicity  and  clearness ;  the  most  important  points  are  seized  upon, 
while  trifling  peculiarities  are  passed  nnnollced."— American  Traveller. 
6 


BLAKE'S  FIRST  BOOK  IN  ASTRONOMY. 

Designed  for  the  Use  of  Common  Schools.    By  Rev.  J.  L.  Blake,  D.  D. 
Illustrated  by  Steel-Plate  Engravings. 

From  E.  Hinckley,  Prof,  of  Mathematics  in  Maryland  University. 

"I  am  much  indebted  to  you  for  a  copy  of  the  First  Book  in  Astronomy. 
It  is  a  worlc  of  utility  and  merit,  far  superior  to  any  other  which  I  have 
seen.  The  author  has  selected  his  topics  with  great  judgment,— arranged 
them  in  admirable  order,— exhibited  them  in  a  style  and  manner  at  once 
tasteful  and  philosophical.  Nothing  seems  wanting,— nothing  redundant. 
It  is  truly  a  very  beautiful  and  attractive  book,  calculated  to  afford  both 
pleasure  and  profit  to  all  who  may  enjoy  the  advantage  of  perusing  it. 

E.  Hinckley. 

From  B.  Field,  Principal  of  the  Hancock  School,  Boston. 
"I  know  of  no  other  work  on  Astronomy,  so  well  calculated  to  interest 
and  instruct  young  learners  iu  this  sublime  science." 

From  James  F.  Gould,  A.  M.  Principal  of  the  High  School  for  Young 
Ladies,  Baltimore,  Md. 
•'I  shall  introduce  your  First  Book  in  Astronomy  Into  my  Academy  in 
September.    I  consider  it  decidedly  superior  to  any  elementary  work  of 
the  kind  I  have  ever  seen.  James  F.  Gould. 

Fro7n  Isaac  Foster,  histructer  of  Youth,  Portland^ 
"I  have  examined  Blake's  First  Book  in  Astronomy,  and  am  much 
pleased  with  it.  A  very  happy  selection  of  topics  is  presented  in  a  manner 
which  cannot  fail  to  interest  the  learner,  while  the  questions  will  assist 
him  materially  in  fixing  in  the  memory  what  ought  to  be  retained.  It 
leaves  the  most  intricate  parts  of  the  subject  for  those  who  are  able  to 
m;ister  them,  and  brings  before  the  young  pupil  only  what  can  be  made 
intelligible  and  interesting  to  him.  Isaac  Foster, 

"The  illustrations,  both  pictorial  and  verbal,  are  admirably  intelligible ; 
and  the  definitions  are  such  as  to  be  easily  comprehended  by  juvenile 
scholars.  The  author  has  interwoven  with  his  scientific  instructions 
much  interesting  historical  informatkm,  and  contrived  to  dress  his  phi- 
losophy in  a  garb  truly  attractive."— iV.  Y.  Daily  Evening  Journal. 

"  We  are  free  to  say,  that  it  is,  in  our  opinion,  decidedly  the  best  work 
we  have  any  knowledge  of,  on  the  sublime  and  interesting  subject  of 
Astronorrty.  The  engravings  are  executed  in  a  superior  style,  and  the 
mechanical  appearance  of  the  book  is  extremely  prepossessing.  The 
knowledge  imparted  is  in  lansjuage  at  once  chaste,  elegant  and  simple. — 
adapted  to  the  comyjrehension  of  tho.'se  for  whom  it  is  designed.  Th« 
subject-matter  is  selected  with  great  judgment,  and  evinces  uncommon 
industry  and  research.  We  earnestly  hope  that  parents  and  teachers  will 
examine  and  judge  for  themselves,  as  we  feel  confident  they  will  coincide 
with  us  in  opinion.  We  only  hope  the  circulation  of  the  work  will  be 
commensurate  with  its  merits." — Boston  Evening  Gazette. 

"  We  do  not  hesitate  to  recommend  it  to  the  notice  of  the  superintend- 
ing committees,  teachers,  and  pupils  of  our  public  schools." — State  Her- 
ald, Portsmouth,  N.  H. 

'•  This  neat  and  prepossessing  little  volume  comprehends  all  the  requi- 
sites of  a  good  book,— such  a  book  as  may  safely  be  put  into  the  hands  of 
children  with  advantage.  The  diction  is  chaste  and  pure,  the  subject 
matter  selected  with  great  judgment,  and  the  language  is  peculiarly 
adapted  to  the  comprehension  of  the  young  mind.  The  introduction  of 
it  into  our  schools  generally,  will,  we  believe,  essentially  promote  the 
cause  of  education." — Saco  paper. 

7 


BLAKE'S  NATURAL  PHILOSOPHY. 

A   NEW    EDITION,   ENLARGED. 
Being  Conversations  on  Philosoplty,  with  the  addition  of  Explanatory 
Notes,  Questions  for  Examination,  and  a  Dictionary  of  Philo- 
sophical Terms.    With  Twenty-eight  steel  engravings. 
By  the  Rev.  J.  L    Blake,  D.  D. 

D3^ Perhaps  no  work  has  contributed  so  much  as  this  to  excite  a  fond- 
ness for  the  study  of  Natural  Philosopiiy  in  youthful  minds.  The  familiar 
comparisons  with  which  it  abounds,  awaken  interest,  and  rivet  the  atten- 
tion of  the  pupil.  It  is  introduced,  with  great  success,  into  the  public 
schools  in  Boston. 

From  Rev.  J.  Adams,  Pres.  of  Charleston  College,  S.  C. 

"I  have  been  highly  gratified  with  the  perusal  of  your  edition  of  Con- 
versations on  Natural  Philosophy.  The  Questions,  Notes,  and  Explana- 
tions of  Ferms,  are  valuable  additions  to  the  work,  and  make  this  edition 
superior  to  any  other  with  which  1  am  acquainted.  I  shall  recommend  it 
wherever  I  have  an  opportunity." 

"  We  avail  ourselves  of  the  opportunity  furnished  us  by  the  publication 
of  a  new  edition  of  this  deservedly  popular  work,  to  recommend  it,  not 
only  to  those  instructers  who  may  not  already  have  adopted  it,  but  also 
generally  to  all  readers  who  are  desirous  of  obtaining  information  on  the 
subjects  on  which  it  treats.  By  Questions  arranged  at  the  bottom  of  the 
pages,  in  which  the  collateral  facts  are  arranged,  he  directs  the  attention 
of  the  learner  to  the  principal  topics.  Mr.  Blake  has  also  added  many 
Notes,  which  illustrate  the  passages  to  which  they  are  appended,  and  the 
Dictionary  of  Philosophical  Terms  is  a  useful  addition. —  U.  S.  Lit.  Gaz. 


PALEY'S  NATURAL  THEOLOGY; 

Illustrated  by  forty  Plates,  and  Selections  from  the  Notes  of  Dr.  Paxton. 

"With  additional  Notes,  original  and  selected,  for  this  edition; 

With  a  Vocabulary  of  Scientific  terms. 

Edited  by  John  Ware,  M.  D. 

"The  work  before  us  is  one  which  deserves  rather  to  be  studied,  than 
merely  read.  Indeed,  without  diligent  attention  and  study,  neither  the 
excellences  of  it  can  be  fully  discovered,  nor  its  advantages  realized.  It 
is  therefore  gratifying  to  find  it  introduced,  as  a  text-book,  into  the  colleges 
and  literary  instilution.s  of  our  country.  The  edition  before  us  is  superior 
to  any  we  have  seen,  and,  we  believe,  superior  to  any  that  has  yet  been 
pubWshed." —Spirit  of  the  Pilgrims. 

"  Perhaps  no  one  of  our  author's  works  gives  greater  satisfaction  to  all 
classes  of  readers,  the  young,  and  the  old,  the  ignorant,  and  the  enlighten- . 
ed.  Indeed,  we  recollect  no  book  in  which  the  arguments  for  the  existence 
and  attributes  of  the  Supreme  Being,  to  be  drawn  from  his  works,  are 
exhibited  in  a  manner  more  attractive  and  more  convincing."— C/ms/ia» 
Examiner. 

"  We  hail  the  appearance  of  Paley's  Theology  with  unfeigned  pleasure. 
No  man  is  an  atheist  aiu;r  reading  the  work.  Infidelity  changes  its  char- 
acter, and  becomes  downright  and  wilful  oppositniii  to  the  truth,  after  it 
has  gone  over  the  pages  before  us.  We  recommend  to  all  young  men  who 
may  see  this  article,  to  procure  a  copy  of  it  forthwith;  we  advise  parents 
to  procure  it  for  their  sons  and  for  their  daughters."— T'rMm/JC^ 
8 


CLASSICAL   STUDIES. 

ESSAYS  ON  ANCIENT  LITERATURE  AND  ART. 

With  the  Biography  aad  Correspondence  of  eminent  Pliilologista. 
By  Barnas  Sears,  President  Newton  Theol.  Institution, 
B.B.Edwards,  Prof.  Andover  Theol.  Seminary,  and 
C.  C.  Felton,  Prof.  Harvard  University. 

"This  elegant  book  is  worthy  of  a  more  extended  notice  than  our  limits 
at  present  will  permit  us  to  give  it.  Great  labor  and  care  have  been  be- 
stowed upon  its  typographical  execution,  which  does  honor  to  the  Ameri- 
can press.  It  is  one  of  the  rare  beauties  of  the  page,  that  not  a  word  ia 
divided  at  the  end  of  a  line  The  mechanical  part  of  the  work,  however, 
is  its  least  praise.  It  is  unique  in  its  character.— standing  alone  among 
the  innumerable  books  of  this  book-making  age.  The  authors  well  deserve 
the  thanks  of  the  cultivated  and  disciplined  portion  of  the  community,  for 
the  service  which,  by  this  publication,  they  have  done  to  the  cause  of 
letters.  Amid  the  tideof  influences  which  are  calculated  to  deteriorate  our 
literature,  and  degrade  the  standard  of  taste  and  learning,  we  feel  under 
great  obligElions  to  those  who  endeavor  to  restore  the  authority  of  ac- 
knowledged models,  to  set  up  barriers  against  the  sweeping  flood  of  worth- 
less literature,  which  is  spreading  far  and  wide  its  evil  results,  and  con- 
cerning which  our  chief  consolation  is.  that  it  is  likely  to  be  as  transitory 
as  it  is  deleterious.  The  book  is  a  plea  for  classical  learning.  While  its  fine 
introduction  and  some  of  the  essays  directly  avow  this  design,  the  corre- 
spondence of  literary  men  which  it  contains,  aims  indirectly  at  the  same 
result.  The  book  isof  ahighorder,  and  worthy  of  the  attentive  perusal  of 
every  scholar.  It  is  a  noble  monument  to  the  taste,  and  judgment,  and 
sound  learning  of  the  projectors,  and  will  yield,  we  doubt  not,  a  rich  har- 
vest of  fame  to  themselves,  and  of  benefit  to  our  literature." — ChT.  Rev. 

"This  volume  is  no  common-place  production.  It  is  truly  refreshing, 
when  we  are  obliged  from  week  to  week  to  look  through  the  massofbooki? 
which  increases  upon  our  table,  many  of  which  are  extremely  attenuated 
in  thought  and  jejune  in  style,  to  find  somethins  which  carries  us  back 
to  the  pure  and  invigorating  influence  of  the  master  minds- of  antiquity. 
The  gentlemen  who  have  produced  this  volume  deserve  the  cordial  thanks 
of  the  literary  world." — New  England  Puritan. 

"  This  book  will  do  good  in  our  colleges.  Every  student  will  want  a 
copy,  and  many  will  be  stimulated  by  its  perusal  to  a  more  vigorous  and 
enthusiastic  pursuit  of  that  higher  and  more  solid  learning,  which  alone 
deserves  to  be  called  'classical.'  The  recent  tendencies  have  been  to  the 
neglect  of  this,  and  we  rejoice  in  this  timely  effort  of  minds  so  well  quali- 
fied for  such  a  work." — Rejlector. 

"The  object  of  the  accomplished  gentlemen  wTio  have  engaged  in  its 
preparation  has  been,  to  foster  and  extend  among  educated  men,  in  this 
country,  the  already  growing  interest  in  classical  studies.  The  design  is 
a  noble  and  generous  one,  and  has  been  executed  with  a  taste  and  good 
sense,  that  do  honor  both  to  the  writers  and  the  publishers.  The  book 
is  one  which  deserves  a  place  in  the  library  of  every  educated  man.  To 
those  now  engaged  in  classical  study  it  cannot  fail  to  be  highly  useful, 
while  to  the  more  advanced  scholar  it  will  open  new  sources  of  interest 
and  delight  in  the  unforgotten  pursuits  of  his  earlier  days."— Pror.  Jowr. 

"The  work  has  been  prepared  by  three  gentlemen  connected  with  as 
many  different  institutions,  who  seem  to  have  entered  upon  and  executed 
their  labor  con  amove  It  is  a  beautiful  example  of  t lie  attractive  force  of 
elegant  and  useful  literature,  overci^ming  the  repelling  elements  of  what 
are"  presumed  to  be  different  creeds.  And  the  product  is  worthy  of  the 
sacrifice,  if  there  have  been  one.  It  is  an  elegant  and  valuable  tribute  to 
the  value  of  classical  learning.  An  introductory  essay  leaves  a  deep  im- 
pression of  the  worth  and  use  of  classical  studies."— Po77/a??ri  Mirror. 
9 


GESENIUS'  HEBREW  GRAMMAR, 

Translated  from  the  Eleventh  German  Edition.     By  T.  J.  Conant,  Prof. 

of  Hebrew  and  of  Biblical  Criticism  and  Interpretation  in  the 

Theol.  Institution  at  Hamilton,  N.  Y.     With  a  Course  of 

Exercises  in  Hebrew  Grammar,  and  a  Hebrew  Chres- 

tomathy,  prepared  by  the  Translator. 

Tfiird  Edition. 

tCjr"  Special  reference  has  been  had  in  the  arrangeme?it ,  illustrations, 
the  addition  of  the  Course  o/  Exercises,  the  Chrestoinathy,  ij-c. ,  to  adapt 
it  to  the  icants  of  thasn  toko  may  wish  to  pursue  the  study  of  Hebrew 
without  the  aid  of  a  teaclier. 

Prof.  Stuart  \\\  an  article  in  the  Biblical  Repository,  says  : — "  With  such 
eflfaris, — such  unremitted,  unwearied,  energetic  edbris, — what  are  we  to 
exp3Cl  from  such  a  mm  as  Gesenius?  Has  he  talent,  juilgmenl,  tact,  as 
a  philologist?  Read  his  work  on  Isaiah;  compare  his  Hebrew  Grammar 
with  I  he  other  grammars  of  the  Hebrew  which  Germany  lias  yet  produced  ; 
read  and  compare  any  twenty,  or  even  ten  articles  on  any  of  the  difficult 
and  impirtant  words  in  the  Hebrew,  with  the  same  in  Buxtorff,  Cocceius, 
Stockins,  Eichhorn's  Slmonis,  Winer,  even  (Parkliurst,  I  cannot  once 
name),  and  then  say  whether  Gasenius,  as  a  Hebrew  philologer,  has  talents, 
tact,  and  judgment  Nothing  but  rival  feelings, or  prejudice,  or  antipathy 
to  his  theological  sentiments,  can  prevent  a  unity  of  answer." 
From  the  Hon.  Edward  Everett. 

Gentlemen, — I  am  greatly  indebted  to  you  for  a  beautiful  copy  of  the 
translation  of  Gesenius's  Hebrew  Grammar,  by  Prof  Conant.  The  reputa- 
tion of  the  original  is  beyond  the  necessity  of  any  testimonials,  and  1  doubt 
not,  from  the  character  of  Prof.  Conant,  that  the  translation  deserves  the 
favorable  reception  wliich,  I  am  happy  to  see,  it  has  met  with.  As  a  spe- 
cimen of  typjgraphy,  the  work  does  great  credit  to  your  press. 

Your  obliged  friend  and  servant,        Edward  Everett. 

"The  workofGesenius  requires  no  eulogy  from  us:  nor  is  this  the  place 
to  enter  into  a  detailed  examination  of  his  theoretical  views  or  practical 
expDsition  of  the  structure  of  the  language;  but  we  concur  with  the 
translator  in  considering  that,  as  a  philosophical  arrangement  and  ex- 
planation of  its  grammatical  phenomena,  it  has  no  equal;  and  that  it  is 
particularly  distinguished  by  a  chaste  simplicity,  and  attractive  clearness 
of  method, — qualities  which  not  only  imply  a  correct  taste  and  logical 
understanding,  but  evince,  also,  a  thorough  mastery  of  the  subject. 
Profdssor  Couant  has  rendered  a  substantial  service  to  the  cause  of  biblical 
learning,  and  done  honor  to  the  impartant  denomination  of  which  he  is  a 
member.  Besides  executing  with  excellent  fidelity  and  good  judgment 
his  translation  of  the  Grammar  of  the  great  Hebraist  of  the  age,  he  has 
some  useful  additions  oT  his  own,  and  has,  in  numerous  instances,  cor- 
rected mistakes  of  a  too  common  class,  which,  if  they  give  little  trouble 
to  some  readers,  are  the  worst  annoyance  to  others, — that  of  errors  in 
reference.  He  has  also  made  additions  of  a  very  judicious  as  well  as  moral 
character,  in  a  series  of  grammatical  Exercises.  The  typographical  exe- 
cution is  in  the  bast  style  of  tiie  Cambridge  university  printers.  The 
letterpress  is  beautiful,  and  all  but  immaculate."— iST.  A.  Review. 

"Professor  Conant  has  executed  his  task  with  great  ability.  He  does 
not  app-^ar  merely  in  the  character  of  a  translator:  the  Chresiomathy  and 
Exercises  prepared  by  him  form  a  very  valuable  addition  to  the  work. 
The  latter,  especially,  are  prepared  with  great  skill  and  ability,  in  such  a 
way  as  to  lead  the  student  forward,  step  by  step,  making  him  thoroughly 
familiar  with  each  point  as  he  advances.  One  other  point  of  extreme  im- 
portance in  such  a  work,  we  must  not  fail  to  notice, — the  correctness  of  the 
printing.  And  when  we  add  that  the  typography,— at  least  the  English 
part  of  it, — is  as  beautiful  as  it  is  correct,  we  have  s;iid  as  much  as  is 
necessary  to  recommend  the  book  to  all  students  of  Hebrew."— iJecorder, 
10 


Eipks'a  Notes. 

THE  FOUR  GOSPELS,  WITH  NOTES. 

Chiefly  Explanatory;  intenrled  principally  for  Sabbath  School  Teachers 
and  Bible  Classes,  and  as  an  Aid  to  Family  InstruGlion. 
.   By  Henry  J.  Kipley,  Prof,  of  Sacred  Rhetoric 
and  Pastoral  Duties,  Newlon  Theol.Ins, 
Seventh  Edition. 
&3="  This  work  should  be.in  the  hands  of  every  student  of  the  Bible; 
especially  every  Sabliath  school  and  Bible  class  teacher,     ll  is  prepaied 
with  special  reference  to  this  class  of  persons,  and  contains  amat^s  oi  just 
the  kind  of  information  wanted. 

''The  undersigned,  having  examined  Professor  RipTey's  Notes  on  the 
Gospels,  can  recommend  them  with  confidence  to  all  who  need  such  helps 
in  the  study  of  the  sacred  Scriptures.  Those  passages  which  all  can 
understand  are  left  'without  note  or  comment,'  and  the  principal  labor 
is  devoted  to  the  explanation  of  such  parts  as  need  to  he  explained  and 
rescued  from  the  perversions  of  errorisls,  both  the  ii^norant  and  the  learned. 
The  practical  suggestions  at  the  close  of  each  chapter,  are  not  the  least 
valuable  portion  of  the  work  Most  cordially,  for  the  sake  ot  truth  and 
riglileousness,  do  we  wish  for  these  Notes  a  wide  circulation. 

B.\noN  Stcw,        R.  H.  Neaie,        R.  Turnbull, 
Daniel  Sharp,     J.  W.  Parker,      N.  Colver." 
Wm    Hague,         R.  W.  Cushman, 
"  Professor  Kipley  has  given  us  a  specimen  of  the  right  kind  of  Crm- 
mentary  ;   the  Notes   are    more  strictly  exjilanatory  than  those  o!   Mr. 
Barnes;  they  occupy  a  smaller  space:  the  .'^tyle.  though  less  pointed  and 
vivacious,  exhibits  more  sobriety;   the  priricijcles  of  inierf.retaticn  are 
more  cautiously  applied;  and  the  explanations,  particularly  on  the  sub- 
ject of  baptism,  are  more  correct." — Christian  Berietc. 


ACTS  or  THE  APOSTLES,  WITE[  NOTES. 

Chiefly  Explanatory.     Designed  for  Teachers  in  Sabbath  Schools 

and  Bible  Classes,  and  as  an  Aid  to  Family  Instruction, 

By  Prof.  Henry  J.  Ripley. 

"The  external  appearance  of  this  book,— the  bindine  and  the  printed 
paee, — '  it  is  a  pleasant  thing  for  the  eyes  to  behold.'  On  examining  the 
contents,  we  are  favorably  impressed,  first,  by  the  wonderful  perspicuity, 
simplicity,  and  comprehensiveness  ofihe  author's  st>  ie ;  secondly,  by  the 
completeness  and  systematic  arrangement  of  the  work,  in  ail  its  parts, 
the  'remarks'  on  each  paragraph  being  carefully  separated  frcm  tie  ex- 
position; thirdly,  by  the'correct  theology,  solid  instruction,  and  consistent 
explanations  of  difficult  passages.  The  work  cannot  tail  to  be  received 
with  favor.  These  Notes  are  much  more  full  than  the  Notes  on  the  Gospels 
by  the  same  author.     A  beautiful  map  accompanies  them."— i^r^ec/or. 

"Tlie  steady  and  extensive  .sale  of  Ripley's  Notes  on  the  Gospels  afl^ord 
good  reason  to  expect  great  popularity  for  the  present  work,  and  an  ac- 
quaintance with  both  wUI  induce  most  readers  to  long  for  similar  Notes  on 
ihe  Epistles,"— A^.  Y.  Baptist  Advocate. 

"  For  those  who  desire  aid  in  understandin?  and  explaining  this  portion 
of  Revelation,  and  who  have  no  access  to  larirer  commentaries,  we  cordial- 
ly recommend  this  volume."— .Bop/as/  Record,  Phila. 


iJD0rk0  on  i3aptt0m^ 


THE    BAPTISMAL   QUESTION; 

Containing  Messrs.  Cooke  and  Towne's  "Hints  to  an  Enquirer,  on 

the  subject  of  Baptism," — a  Review  of  the  "Hints,"  by  the 

Rev.  William  Hague,  with  a  "Rejoinder,"  by 

Cooke  and  Towns,  and  Mr.  Hagite's 

Examination  of  the  Rejoinder. 

BAPTISM  ITS  OWN  WITNESS; 

Or,  Reflections  suggested  by  reading  "The  Baptized  Child."    By  Rev. 
Wm.  Hague,  Pastor  of  Federal  St.  Baptist  Church,  Boston. 

JEWETT   ON   BAPTISM. 

The  Mode  and  Subjects  of  Baptism.    By  Milo  P.  Jewett,  A.  M., 

late  professor  in  Marietta  College,  and  a  licensed  minister 

of  the  Presbyterian  church. 

Sixth  Thousand. 


CHRISTIAN   BAPTISM. 

An  Examination  of  Stuart's  Essay  on  Baptism.    By  H.  J.  Ripley, 

Professor  in  Newton  Theological  Institution.    - 


FULLER'^  DIALOGUES  ON  COMMUNION. 

Being  a  candid  and  able  Discussion  of  Strict  and  BTixed  Com- 
munion; to  which  is  added,  Dr.  Griffin's  Letter  on 
the  subject,  and  a  Review  of  the  same, 
by  Prof.  H.  J.  Ripley. 
Second  Edition. 

Those  Christians  who  have  read  the  writings  of  the  celebrated  Mr.  Hall 
on  this  subject,  ought  to  do  themselves  the  justice  to  peruse  these  con- 
versations by  one  of  his  church,  the  son  of  the  late  Andrew  Fuller.  The 
work  is  written  in  a  manly  style,  and  did  not  interrupt  the  affection 
which  existed  between  Mr  Hall  and  Mr.  Fuller.  This  relation  between 
the  two  writers  gives  much  interest  to  the  publication.  One  important 
trait  in  the  Dialogue  is,  that  Mr  Fuller  meets  Mr.  Hall  arrayed  in  his 
own  lansruage.  A^  a  controversial  work  it  has  few  rivals,  in  regard  either 
to  Chrislian  spirit,  or  argumentative  powers.  The  public  are  under  ob- 
ligations to  the  editor,  Rev.  Peter  Chase,  for  his  notes,  references,  &c., 
which  enhance  the  value  of  tlie  American  edition.  Prof  Ripley's  able 
Review  of  Dr.  Griffin's  letter,  adds  intrinsic  worth  to  the  book,  which  will 
ever  remain  a  standard  volume  on  this  important  subject. 
12 


MY  PROGRESS  IN  ERROR, 

AND   RECOVERY  TO  TRUTH. 

Or,  a  Tour  through  Universalism,  Unitarianism,  and  Skepticism. 
Second  TTiousand. 
Extract  of  a  letter  from  Prof.  Stuart,  Andover. 
"  Gentlemen:— I  have  received  a  copy  of '  My  Progress  in  Error,'  and 
read  it  with  attention  and  much  interest.  I  take  the  liberty  to  say,  that 
in  my,  judgment,  the  author  of  that  book  has  written  a  plain  and  unvar- 
nished account  of  the  operations  not  only  of  his  own  mind,  but  of  many 
others.  The  author  has  gone  through  the  whole,  without  personal  abuse 
of  any  body,  and  without  any  slanderous  insinuations.  It  seems  to  me, 
that  what  he  has  said  about  the  operations  of  Unitarian  sentiments,  he 
has  been  compelled  to  say  by  a  regard  to  truth.  In  fact,  I  regard  the 
book  as  a  remarkable  example  of  prudent  forbearance,  as  to  stigmatizing 
either  opponents  or  their  sentiments.  I  predict  it  will  be  found  fault 
with,  and  violently  attacked.  But  in  my  humble  opinion,  the  reason  of 
this  will  be,  that  the  author  has  drawn  a  true  likeness  of  so  many;  and 
when  this  is  held  up  to  public  view,  it  is  ua  t  a  very  pleasing  portrait. 
Who  likes  to  be  seen  in  a  forbidding  picture?  Tlie  book  will  be  read, 
notwithstanding  newspaper  criticism;  and  if  1  do  not  miscalculate  great- 
ly, it  will  aid  much  in  opening  the  eyes  of  the  public,  as  the  workings  and 
evasions  of  a  skeptical  spirit.    Bid  the  author  of  it  God  speed. 

"  Your  friend  and  obedient  servant,      M.  Stuart." 

Opinions  of  the  Press. 
"In  many  of  the  passages  we  almost  fancied  that  the  writer  had  been 
sketching  a  history  of  our  own  '  progress  in  error,'  so  true  is  the  history, 
and  so  similar  the  feelings  of  those  who  are  led  away  in  the  morning  of 
life,  into  the  dark  and  dreary  path  of  religious  error.  We  should  be  glad 
to  have  this  book  placed  in  the  hands  of  every  young  man  whc^e  mind  is 
unsettled  upon  the  question  of  experimental  religion,  and  especially  of 
those  who  are  trying  to  believe  the  doctrine  of  Universalism."— C^rzs- 
tian  Secretary, 

"  It  is  written  in  a  bold  and  comprehensive  style.  We  doubt  not  it 
will  find  numerous  readers  in  the  community,  and  may  serve  as  a  chart 
to  guide  others  in  the  progress  of  life." — American  Traveller. 

"  We  should  be  glad  if  a  copy  of  the  book  could  be  put  into  the  hands  of 
every  one  whn  is  disposed  to  cavil  at  the  truth,  and  embrace  error." — 
Phil.  Baptist  Recorder. 

"In  this  work  the  author  gives  an  affecting  account  of  his  downward 
course  through  the  bewildering  mazes  of  Universalism,  Unitarianism,  &c., 
giving  but  a  living  picture  of  the  'progress  of  error'  of  very  many,  who 
are  almost  imperceptibly  led  on  from  one  step  to  another,  until  they  are 
lost  in  the  fearful  labyrinth  of  infidelity.  The  author  is  candid  in  his  man- 
ner, and  forcible  in  his  reasonings,  and  at  last  informs  us  of  his  being 
brought  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth."— iV.  H.  Register. 

"The  anonymous  author  of  this  book  informs  us  that  this  is  not  a 
hasty  production,  more  than  ten  years  havine  elapsed  since  the  last  lead- 
ing event  which  it  records  transpired;  without  his  declaration,  we  might 
have  thought  it  written  as  an  off<et  to  Mr.  Brownson's  Charles  EUwood. 
It  is  in  fact  a  relisious  novel,  and  as  such,  is  rather  interesting.  It  was 
to  us,  for  we  read  it  through  at  one  sitting." — Boston  Courier. 

"It  cannot  be  doubted  that  it  is  admiraljly  adapted  to  a  wide-spread 
circulation,  and  salutary  influence.     Great  good  will  result  from  the  dis- 
tribution of  this  work."— Boston  Recorder^ 
2  13 


LIFE  OF  PHILIP  MELANCTHON. 

COMPRISING  AN  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  REFORMATION. 
By  F.  A.  Cox,  D.  D.  L.L.  T). 
"This  13  a  neat  edition  of  a  work,  which  has  obtained  in  England  a 
permanent  reputation.  The  acquaintance,  which  many  in  this  country 
have  formed  with  its  author,  will  induce  them  to  read  the  book  with  in- 
creased interest.  It  is  well  written,  in  a  style,  which,  though  flowing 
and  ornate,  is  not  turgid.  It  shows  all  the  learning  which  is  appropriate 
to  the  subject,  without  an  offensive  display.  The  facts  concerning  Me- 
lancthon  are  detailed  with  clearness,  and  a  lucid  view  is  presented  of  the 
principal  personages  and  events  of  the  age.  From  no  other  book,  tvithin 
the  same  compass,  could  a  better  knowledge  of  the  rise  and  progress  of  the 
Reformation  be  obtained.  For  this  reason,  as  well  as  for  the  attractions 
which  belong  to  the  character  of  Melancthon,  the  book  is  valuable." — 
Christian  Review. 


ONESIMUS 


OR,  THE  APOSTOLIC  DIRECTION  TO  CHRISTIAN  MASTERS 
IN  REFERENCE  TO  THEIR  SLAVES. 

By   EVANGELICUS. 

"We  are  glad  to  see  this  subject  presented  to  the  consideration  of 
Christians,  by  itself  and  without  any  reference  to  other  questions  that 
a?itate  the  public  mind;  and  we  are  glad  that  the  writer  has  confined 
himself,  in  the  argument,  so  closely  to  the  law  of  love.  The  Es-say  is 
written  with  care,  and  in  a  kind  and  dispassionate  spirit ;  and  although 
it  cannot  be  expected  to  unite  the  minds  of  all  parties,  either  here  or  at 
the  South,  it  is  well  calculated  to  promote,  wherever  it  is  read,  the  au- 
thor's object. —  VermotU  Chronicle. 

"  ]t  is  written  in  an  excellent  spirit,  with  close  logic,  and  severe  per- 
spicuity, and  is  evidently  from  a  practised  pen." — Zion's  Herald. 

"Its  whole  spirit  and  tendency  are  the  opposite  of  the  anti-slavery  pub- 
lications, which  have  produced  so  much  e\\\."— Princeton  Review. 

MEMOIR  OF  ROGER  WILLIAMS, 

The  Founder  of  the  Stale  of  Rhode  Island. 
By  Rev.  James  D.  Knowles. 
"In  perusing  Prof  Knowles's  Memoir  of  Roger  Williams,  the  reader 
will  find  mucliof  this  beauty  of  history  t<i  which  we  have  alluded,  as 
combined  with  biography.  There  were  many  nobie  traits  of  cdaracler 
in  Mr.  Williams,  which  rendered  him  the  object  of  deserved  admiration; 
such  as  his  eminent  piety,  his  acts  of  humanity  and  justice  towards  the 
Indians,  his  unbending  integrity  in  princii)le,  &c.— Ijul  as  that  for  which 
he  is  most  peculiarly  the  object  of  our  admiration,  we  select  his  un- 
shaken attachment  to,  and  perteverin?  vindication  of  entire  liberty  of 
conscience  in  relieions  worship.  Mr.  Williams  was  decided  on  this  .sub- 
ject Tl\e  Holy  Scriptures  were  the  standard  of  his  belief,  and  the  au- 
thority which  he  recognized  for  the  regulation  of  his  conscience  The 
task  of  writing  a  memoir  of  Roger  Williams  was  by  no  means  inconsider- 
able. ProfessTir  Knowle.s,  from  a  correct  apprehension  of  the  prmciples 
ef  religions  liberty,  was  peculiarly  the  man  to  enter  on  this  labor.  We 
are  pleased  that  he  has  completed  it  in  an  able  nianner,  and  given  as  full 
and  correct  a  delineation  of  this  gr^at  man  as  could  probably  have  been 
given  by  any  other  author  in  Europe  or  America,  The  volume  is  a  rich 
acquisition  to  the  history  of  our  country,  ranking  high  in  the  catalogue 
of  our  best  works  in  American  literature."— C/irjsfmn  Watchman. 
14 


0abbatl)  0c()0ol  Book- 


Lir^COLJN'S 

SABBATH   SCHOOL   CLASS   BOOK. 

Comprising  copious  Exercises  on  the  Sacred  Scriptures.    By  E.  Lincoln. 

Revised  and  improved  by  an  eminent  Clergyman 

and  a  Superintendent. 

ti:;^The  present  edition  has  been  thoroughly  revised  and  enlarged  by 
gentlemen  well  qualified  for  the  lasic  The  book,  in  its  present  shape,  is 
one  of  the  cheapest  and  most  complete  of  the  kind  now  in  use. 

"Having  examined  your  Sabbath  School  Class  Book,  it  gives  us  pleasure 
to  express  our  satisfaction  with  its  design  and  execution.  The  great 
benefit  which  a  ?o'id  class  book  accomplishes,  consists  ig  guiding  the 
mind  of  the  scholar  in  the  study  of  his  lesson,  and  in  suggesting  topics 
of  conversation  to  the  teacher.  To  this  end  we  think  your  work  is  well 
adapted,  having  avoided,  in  a  great  degree,  the  evils  of  extreme  redun- 
dance or  conciseness.  VVm.  Hague,        H.  Malcom, 

L.  BoLLEs,  Baron  Stow." 

E.  Thresher, 


LINCOLN'S    SCRIPTURE  QUESTIONS. 

With  the  Answers  annexed,  giving,  in  the  language  of  the  Sacred  Volume^ 

interesting  portions  of  the  History,  and  a  concise  View  of  the 

Doctrines  and  Duties  exhibited  in  the  Bible. 

Where  Bibles  cannot  be  furnished  to  each  scholar,  the  Scripture  Ques- 
tions may  be  used  with  convenience,  as  the  answers  are  printed. 


MALCOM'S   BIBLE   DICTIONARY. 

A  Dictionary  of  the  most  important  Names,  Objects,  and  Terms,  found  in 

the  Holy  Scriptures;  intended  principally  for  Sunday  School 

Teachers  and  Bible  Classes.    By  H.  Malcom,  A.  M. 

Illustrated  by  thirty-nine  "Engravings  on 

Wood,  and  a  Map  of  Palestine. 

From  the  Minutes  of  the  Vermont  State  Convention. 

"Your  Committee  earneslly  recommend  Malcom's  Bible  Dictionary, 

the  worth  of  which  every  lover  of  the  Bible  will  feel,  and  the  low  price  of 

which  places  it  within  the  reach  of  all." 

From  the  Minutes  of  the  Boston  Association. 
"Believing  that  the  advantages  of  Sabbath  School  and  Bible  Class  in- 
struction depend  greatly  on  the  inlellieence  of  iheir  teachers,  and  that 
the  exte.ided  circulation  of  Malcom's  Bible  Dictionary  would  conduce  to 
their  better  qualification,  Resolved,  That  this  work  be  recommended  to 
the  patronage  of  the  friends  of  early  religious  insUw&tion." 
15 


HAGUE'S  GUIDE  TO  CONVERSATION 

ON  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT. 

Designed  for  the  Use  of  Bible  Classes  and  Sabbath  Schools. 

Vol.  I,  Matthew,— Vol.  II,  John. 

By  Rev.  William  Hague. 

The  object  of  this  work  is  two-fold: — 1st.  To  facilitate  the  efforts  of 
the  teachers  in  communicating  instruction  to  their  classes:— 2d.  To  ex- 
cite a  spirit  of  inquiry  among  the  classes  themselves.  To  this  end,  such 
questions  are  asked  as  are  adapted  to  lead  the  mind  to  think,  and  only 
such  as  the  scholar,  with  the  Bible  in  his  hand,  may  be  expected  to 
answer,  by  the  aid  of  his  own  reflecting  powers.  The  questions  are  in- 
terspersed with  familiar  remarks,  which  are  designed  to  convey  to  the 
scholar  such  information  as  may  not  be  within  his  reach,  and  also  to 
keep  up  a  continuous  conversation  between  the  teacher  and  the  class. 

THEcSAINT'S  EVERLASTING  REST. 

By  the  Rev,  Richard  Baxter. 

From  Rev.  Dr.  Wayland,  President  of  Brown  University. 
"I  am  gratified  to  perceive  that  you  have  published  a  handsome  edition  of 
Baxter's  Saint's  Rest.     Of  the  value  of  the  work  itself,  it  is  superfluous  to 
speak.    It  has  few  equals  in  any  language.    The  ordinary  copies  are  pal- 
pably beneath  the  value  of  the  work." 

THE  IMITATION  OF  CHRIST. 

In  Three  Books.    By  Thomas  a  Kempis.    With  an  Introductory  Essay, 

by  Thomas  Chalmers,  of  Glasgow.    A  new  edition. 

Edited  by  Rev.  Howard  MaLcom. 

This  work  has,  for  three  hundred  years,  been  esteemed  one  of  the  best 
practical  books  in  existence,  and  has  gone  through  a  vast  number  of 
editions,  not  only  in  the  original  Latin,  but  in  every  language  of  Europe. 
Dr.  Payson,  of  Portland,  warmly  recommended  ii,  in  a  letter  to  a  young 
clergyman.  That  the  benefit  of  the  work  may  be  universally  enjoyed, 
the  translation  of  Payne,  which  best  agrees  with  the  original,  has  been 
revised  by  Rev.  Howard  Malcom,  and  such  retrenchments  made,  as  adapt 
it  to  general  use. 

JAMES'S  CHURCH-MEMBER'S  GUIDE. 

With  an  Introductory  Essay,  by  Rev.  H.  Winslow. 
Edited  by  Rev.  J.  O.  Choules. 

Wishes  for  its  universal  circulation  are  received  by  the  Publishers 
from  ministers  and  brethren  in  every  section  of  the  country. 

A  pastor  writes,  "I  sincerely  wish  that  every  professor  of  religion  in 
the  land  may  possess  this  excellent  manual.  I  am  anxious  that  every 
member  of  my  church  should  possess  it,  and  shall  be  happy  to  promote  its 
circulation  still  more  extensively." 

A  gentleman  in  Virginia  writes:  "I  wish  every  Christian  to  possess  the 
Church-Member's  Guide." 

"The  spontaneous  effusion  of  our  heart,  on  laying  the  book  down, 
was,— may  every  church-member  in  our  land  soon  possess  this  book,  and 
be  blessed  with  all  the  happiness  which  conformity  to  its  evangelic  sen- 
timents and  directions  is  calculated  to  conter."— Christian  Secretary. 
16 


THE  BEAUTIES  OF  COLLYER. 

Selections  from  the  Theological  Lectures  of  Rev.  W.  B.  Collyer,  D.  D. 

By  Rev.  J.  O.  Choules. 

The  merits  of  Dr.  Collyer  are  thus  noticed  by  an  eminent  reviewer. — 
"His  researches,  his  various  learning,  and  accumulation  of  intercsiing 
facts,  his  presenting  old  and  familiar  iruihs  in  a  new  and  striking  man- 
ner, entitle  him  to  rank  high  as  a  theological  writer.  His  style  is  re- 
markably elegant  and  polished,  and  there  is  a  rich  vein  of  evangelical 
pieiy  running  through  all  his  works."  In  making  up  the  volume  from 
so  eminent  an  author,  the  editor  has  selected  those  parts  which  he  sup- 
posed would  create  habits  of  thought  in  the  Christian  community,  and 
pr&sent  a  volume  well  suited  for  the  Christian  library.  Indeed,  this  book 
contains  a  rich  treasure  of  truth  up.m  seventy  subjects,  for  all  classes  of 
readers.  It  is  well  calculated  to  give  youth  a  taste  for  reading,  as  it  is  to 
encourage  the  mature  Christian  in  his  course  of  duty,  and  to  confirm  his 
hopes  of  a  happy  immortality. 


SCRIPTURE  NATURAL  HISTORY. 

Containing  a  descriptive  account  of  Quadrupeds,  Birds,  Fishes,  Insects, 

Reptiles,  Serpents,  Plants,  Trees,  Minerals,  Gems,  and  Precious 

Stones,  mentioned  in  the  Bible.     By  Wm.  Carpenter, 

London;  with  improvements.    By  G.  D.  Abbott. 

Illustrated  by  numerous  engravings, 

also,  Sketches  of  Palestine. 

"This  is  a  very  interesting  volume  to  general  readers  of  the  Bible. 
Mr.  Abbott  has  divested  the  work  of  its  learned  references,  and  adapted 
it  to  the  comprehension  of  all.  Mr.  Carpenter  compiled  the  work  from 
the  Natural  History  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Harris,  of  Dorchester,  Mass  ,  and  very 
ungenerously  refused  to  acknowledge  his  obligations  to  the  author,  while 
he  abused  him  for  his  want  of  orthodoxy.  Mr.  Abbott  has  faithfully  ex- 
posed the  piracy.  We  recommend  the  volume  as  one  of  great  value." — 
American  Giuarterly  Register. 


CAMPBELL  &FENELON  ON  ELOQUENCE. 

Campbell's  Lectures  on  Theology  and  Pulpit  Eloqu^ce, 

and  Fenelon's  Dialogues  on  Eloquence. 

Edited  by  Prof.  H.  J.  Ripley. 

Jl3="It  has  been  the  aim  of  the  editor  of  this  work  to  make  it  more 
fitted  to  students  in  this  country,  and  more  profitable  to  those  whose 
studies  have  not  extended  beyond  their  own  language.  And  he  considers 
that  these  Lectures  inculcate  the  true  mode  in  which  the  study  of  theology 
should  be  conducted.  The  excellence  of  Fenelon's  Dialogues  concerning 
Eloquence,  their  general  agreement  with  the  sentiments  of  Dr.  Camp- 
bell's Lectures,  and  their  more  am|)le  discussion  of  certain  topics  connect- 
ed with  preaching,  render  thfiir  insertion  in  this  volume  quite  appropriate. 
These  dialogues  Dr.  Doddridge  has  called  "  incmnparable  dialogues  on 
eloquence,"  which,  he  remarks,  "may  God  put  it  into  the  hearts  of  our 
preachers  often  and  attentively  to  read  "  This  complete  volume  nn  elo- 
quence has  been  noticed  by  several  periodicals,  and  recommended  to  all 
students  who  are  preparing  for  the  Christian  ministry. 
2*  17 


(glcgant  ilUniaturc  Dolumt©. 

Gilt  Edges  and  Beautifully  Ornamented  Covers. 


DAILY  MANNA, 

FOR   CHRISTIAN   PILGRIMS. 

By  Rev.  Baron  Stow,  Pastor  of  the  Baldwin  Place  Church,  Boston. 

tl3==This  work  contains  a  text  of  Scripture  for  each  day  in  the  year, 
with  an  analysis  of  its  contents,  and  a  verse  of  poetry. 

"  A  perfect  gem  of  a  book,  and  full  of  gems  from  the  mine  that  yields 
the  purest  and  brightest  that  are  found  in  the  world, — every  one  that  sees 
it  will  wish  to  have  the  volume." — N.  Y.  Observer. 

"This  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful,  and  beyond  all  doubt  one  of  the  most 
valuable,  of  those  little  books,  that  have  been  issued  for  the  purpose  of 
suggesting  themes  of  daily  meditation  to  Christians.  A  passage  is  fur- 
nished for  each  day  in  the  year,  and  an  appropriate  division  of  the  passage 
is  suggested  as  the  foundation  of  thought,  to  which  is  appended  an  appro- 
priate stanza." — Baptist  Record. 

"  It  is  a  charming  little  volume." — Boston  Recorder. 


THE  YOUNG  COMMUNICANT: 

An  Aid  to  the  Right  Understanding  and  Spiritual  Improvement 
of  the  Lord's  Supper. 

"A  work  of  this  character  has  been  much  needed,  especially  by  the 
young  members  of  our  churches." — Vh.  Rejlector. 

"An  exceedingly  interesting  and  instructive  little  volume,"— CAm- 
tian  Watchman. 

"A  timely  little  volume,  just  when  we  needed  it.  We  know  of  no 
present  to  the  young  Christian  more  timely  and  valuable  than  this." — 
Norwich  Spectator. 

"  A  book  of  choice  practical  matter,  a  little  gem." — Boston  Cultivator. 


THE  CASKET  OF  FOUR  JEWELS, 

FOR  YOUNG  CHRISTIANS. 

Containing,   Apollos— Growth  in  Grace— The  Golden  Censer— and  the 

Christian  Citizen.    By  John  A.  James,  Jonathan  Edw^aeds, 

and  John  Harris,  D.  D. 

"These  Jewels  are  truly  *  pearls  of  great  price,'  compacted  in  a  neat 
and  beautiful  casket.  Spiritual  Christians  have  exan.iiied  these  jewels 
separately,  and  expre.ssing  high  admiration  of  their  individual  precious- 
ness,  have  desired  to  possess  them  in  a  form  less  perishable  and  more 
worthy  of  their  excellence."— /Sa/em  Gazette. 
18 


THE  BIBLE  AND  THE  CLOSET; 

Or,  how  we  may  read  the  Scriptures  with  the  most  spiritual  profit. 

By  Thomas  Watson.— and  Secret  Prayer  successfully  managed, 

By  Samuel  Lee.    Edited  by  Rev  John  O.  Choules, 

"This  class  of  publications  supply  the  most  striking  deficiency  in  the 
practical  religious  literature  of  the  day.  Here  are  rich  views  of  scriptural 
illustration  and  of  religious  sentiment,  buried  in  the  tomes  of  the  six- 
teenth and  seventeenth  centuries,  and  it  is  a  good  service  to  the  church 
of  the  nineteenth  to  re-open  those  mines.  Our  neophytes  need  it,  and 
our  ministerial  corps  may  find  models  which  can  be  most  profitably  imi- 
tated."—Afr.  Kirk's  Letter. 


THE  MARRIAGE  RING; 

OR,    HOW    TO    MAKE    HOME    HAPPY. 

From  the  writings  of  John  Angell  James. 

"It  is  a  precious  little  work,  calculated  alike  to  improve  the  morals 
and  promote  the  happiness  of  the  domestic  hearth." — Southern  Whig. 

"A  baautlful  little  volume,  and  composed  of  lessons  of  sound  wisdom 
and  useful  instruction." — Boston  Recorder. 

"  This  is  a  charming  little  keepsake  which  every  young  married  couple 
ought  to  possess.  It  gives  a  most  satisfying  account  of  the  nature  and 
duties  of  married  life.  It  makes  '  mutual  attachment '  the  indispensable 
basis  of  the  marriage  state,  raising  its  eloquent  little  voice  against  any 
attempts  to  unite  in  marriage  those  who  are  influenced  only  by  worldly 
motives,  selfish  aims,  or  considerations  of  woildly  honor.  We  commend 
this  little  book  to  all  young  men  and  women  who  expect  ever  to  be  blest 
in  marriage;  and  we  wish  the  ministers  who  take  it  upon  them  to  join 
these  young  men  and  women,  would  see  that  the  uninitiated  have  in  their 
possession  this  safe  and  useful  little  guide." — Norwich  Spectator. 


LYRIC     GEMS. 

A  COLLECTION  OF  ORIGINAL  AND  SELECT  SACRED  POETRY". 
Edited  by  Rev.  S.  F.  Smith. 

THE  CYPRESS  WREATH: 

A  BOOK  OF  CONSOLATION  FOR  THOSE  WHO  MOURN. 
Edited  by  Rev.  Rufus  W.  Griswold. 

THE  POETRY  OF  LOVE, 

Edited  by  Rev.  R.  W  Griswold. 

SELF-EXAMINATION: 

OR,  PLAIN  QUESTIONS  FOR  PROFESSORS  OF  RELIGION. 

By  a  Pastor. 
19 


A  NEW  GUIDE  FOR  EMIGRANTS  TO  THE  WEST. 

By  John  M.  Peck,  of  lUinoia. 

"  We  earnestly  wish  this  most  excellent  work  was  in  the  hands  of  those 
hundreds  of  Emigrants,  who  are  now  about  town,  and  intend  to  go  '  West.' 
The  advice  and  information  contained  in  these  tiiree  hundred  and  seven- 
ty-four pages,  are  really  invaluable,  and  if  attended  to,  would  save  an  im- 
mense amount  of  time,  trouble,  and  last,  not  least,  money.  The  author 
may  be  depended  upon;  having  had  every  opportunity  (or  gathering  facta 
and  knowledge  on  the  subject."— iV:.  Y.  Messenger. 

"The  merits  of  the  'Guide  for  Emigrants,'  published  some  years  since, 
are  well  known.  The  present  volume,  however,  contains  many  improve- 
ments on  the  former  work,  and  embraces  many  additional  facts  in  relation 
to  the  States  and  Territories  lying  in,  and  bordering  on,  the  Great  Valley 
of  the  Mississippi,  which  render  it  not  only  exceedingly  valuable  to  the 
emigrant  or  man  of  business,  who  may  be  induced  to  visit  that  portion  of 
the  country,  but  a'l  who  are  desirousof  gaining  information  relative  to  the 
soil,  climate,  productions,  and  character  and  pursnits  of  the  people  who 
reside  in  the  Great  Valley."— iV/ercawaVe  Journal. 


ESSAY  ON  THE  DIVINITY  OF  CHRIST. 

By  D.  Van  de  Wynpersse,  D.  D. 

TRAVELS  OF  TRUE  GODLINESS. 

By  Rev.  B.  Keach.    A  Memoir  of  his  Life,  by  Howard  Malcom,  A.  M. 

FEMALE    SCRIPTURE    BIOGRAPHY. 

With  an  Essay  on  what  Christianity  has  done  for  Women. 
By  Rev.  F.  A.  Cox. 

HELP  TO  ZION'S  TRAVELLERS. 

By  Rev.  Robert  Hall,  with  a  Preface,  by  Rev.  Dr.  Ryland. 
Edited  by  Rev.  J.  A.  Warne. 

THE  THEATRE. 

In  its  Influence  upon  Literature,  Morals,  and  Religion. 
By  Rev.  R.  Turneull. 

THE  PRINCIPLE  OF  CHRISTIAN  UNION. 

By  Rev.  William  Hague. 
20 


JDr.  farm's  toark^. 


Probably  no  writer  of  modern  times  has  so  much  engaged  the  public 
mind  as  Dr.  Harris.  All  his  tcorks  have  been  favorably  received,  ex- 
tensively reviewed,  and  both  the  style  and  spirit  highly  recommended. 

THE  GREAT  COMMISSION; 

The  Christian  Church  constituted  and  charged  to  convey  the  Gospel  to 

the  World.     With  an  Introductory  Essay,  by 

Kev.  Wm.  R.  Williams,  D.  D. 

Fourth  Thousand. 

THE  GREAT  TEACHER; 

Or,  Characteristics  of  our  Lord's  Ministry.     With  an  Introductory 

Essay,  by  Heman  Humphrey,  D.  D. 

Ninth  Thousand. 

MAMMON; 

Or,  Covetousness  the  Sin  of  the  Christian  Church.    A  Prize  Essay. 
Seventh  Thousand. 

UNION; 

Or,  the  Divided  Church  made  One. 
Second  Thousand. 

ZEBULON; 

Or,  the  Condition  and  Claims  of  Sailors.    The  Prize  Essay,  written  for 

the  British  and  Foreign  Sailors'  Society.    American  Edition. 

Edited  by  Rev.  Wm.  M.  Rogers  and  D,  M.  Lord. 

Third  Thousand. 

THE  WITNESSING  CHURCH; 

32mo,  cloth. 

THE  CHRISTIAN  CITIZEN; 

Paper,  gilt  edges. 

THE   GOLDEN   CENSER; 

Or,  a  Visit  to  the  House  of  Prayer.    Paper,  gilt  edgea. 
21 


itlusic  i3ook0. 


COMPANION  FOR  THE  PSALMIST. 

Containing  Original  Music,  arranged  for  Hymns  in  "The  Psalmist,"  of 

peculiar  character  and  metre ;  and  to  most  of  which  no 

tunea  found  in  the  collections  now  in  use,  are 

adapted.    By  N.  D.  Gould. 

THE  SABBATH  SCHOOL  HARMONY. 

Containing  appropriate  Hymns  and  Music  for  Sabbath 
Schools,  Juvenile  Singing  Schools,  and  Family 
Devotion.    By  N.  D.  Gould. 
"  The  work  before  us  is  got  up  in  a  very  convenient  and  attractive  form. 
It  contains  about  fifty  tunes,  and  seventy-five  hymns.     The  music  is  most 
of  it  original,  and  of  that  style  and  character,  which  long  experience  in 
leaching  has  satisfied  the  author  is  best  calculated  to  interest  not  only 
children,  but  persons  of  matyrer  age,  when  learning  to  sing.    The  hymns 
appear  to  be  selected  with  peculiar  taste  and  care,  and,  for  Sabbath  School 
purposes,  of  such  variety,  as  to  require  no  other  hymn  book.     We  espe- 
cially commend  this  little  work  to  the  notice  of  Sabbath  School  teachers, 
believing  it  to  be  the  best  work  for  Sabbath  Schools  now  before  the  public." 

THE  SACRED  MINSTREL; 

A  Collection  of  Church  Music,  consisting  of  Psalm  and  Hymn  Tunes, 

Anthems,  Sentences,  Chants,  &c.,  selected  from  the  moat 

popular  productions  of  nearly  one  hundred 

different  authors  in  this  and  other 

countries.    By.  N.D.Gould. 

NATIONAL  CHURCH  HARMONY, 

Containing  Tunes  calculated  for  Public  "Worship,  Anthems  and  Select 

Pieces  for  Fasts,  Thanksgivings,  Christmas.  Missionary 

Meetings,  &c.,  &c.    By  N.  D.  Gould. 

New  stereotype  edition. 

WINCHELL'S   WATTS. 

Enlarged,  being  an  arrangement  of  all  the  Psalms  and  Hymns  of 
Dr.  Watts.    With  a  Supplement. 

HYMNS  FOR  THE  VESTRY  &  FIRESIDE. 

A  choice  Collection  of  about  four  hundred  hymns. 

THE    CHRISTIAN   REVIEW. 

Quarterly.     Edited  by  Rev.  S.  F.  Smith. 
K^  A  few  back  volumes  can  be  had  at  reduced  rates  if  applied  for  soon. 
23 


®l)c  ittissionorg  (Bnkxpxm. 

It  has  been  well  said,  that  "  to  imbue  men  thoroughly  tcith  the  mission- 
ary spirit,  we  must  acquaint  them  intimately  with  the  missionary  enter- 
prise." The  spirit  of  missions  seems  everywhere  to  be  increasing.  The 
circulation  of  printed  documents,  and  other  like  efforts,  are  giving  a 
new  impetus  to  the  cause. 

The  following  valuable  works  contain  just  the  kind  of  information 
needed.    Let  every  one  purchase  and  read  them. 

ORIGIN  AND  HISTORY  OF  MISSIONS; 

A  Record  of  the  Voyages,  Travels,  Labors,  and  Successes  of  the 
various  Missionaries  who  have  been  sent  forth  by  Protes- 
tant Societies  to  evangelize  the  Heathen.     Compiled 
from  authentic  Documents.    Forming  a 
Complete  Missionary  Repository. 
Illustrated  by  numerous  Engravings,  made  expressly  for  this  work. 
By  Rev.  John  O.  Choules,  A.  M.,  and  Rev  Thomas  Smith. 
Sixtli  Edition.  Enlarged  and  Improved. 
recommendations. 
From  the  Secretary  of  the  Am.  B.  C  F.  Missions. 
"It  is  the  most  comprehensive,  and  the  best  extant.    It  contains  a  rich 
store  of  authentic  facts,  hishly  important  both  to  the  minister  and  the 
private  Christian.    To  the  former,  it  will  bean  invaluable  assistant  in 
his  preparations  for  the  monthly  concert  and  other  missionary  meetings; 
and  in  the  family,  it  will  furnish  instructive  and  useful  employment  to 
the  members,  of  different  ages,  in  many  an  hour  that  otherwise  might 
not  be  so  profitably  occupied.  R.  Anderson." 

From  the  Secretaries  of  the  Am.  Bap.  Board  of  Foreigyi  Missions. 
"The  History  of  Missions,  as  its  name  denotes,  is  a  narrative  of  the 
means  and  methods  by  which  the  gospel  has  been  propagated  in  pagan 
lands,  beginning  with  the  earliest  efforts  of  the  church,  but  presenting 
more  at  large  The  origin  and  progress  of  the  principal  missionary  insti- 
tutions of  the  last  and  present  centuries.  Being  derived  from  authentic 
sources,  and  fitted,  by  its  happy  selection  of  incidents,  to  cherish  an 
intelligent  interest  in  the  subjects  of  which  it  treats,  we  hope  it  will 
secure  an  extensive  circulation.  It  is  worthy  of  a  place  in  every  Chris- 
tian  library.  Lucius  Bolles,        Solomon  Peck." 

'■The  typographical  execution  of  this  work,  in  point  of  beauty  and  ele- 
gance, is  not  surpassed  by  any  publication  we  have  met  with  from  the  ■ 
American  press.  The  quarto  form  is  indeed  rare,  in  this  country,  and 
perhaps  in  other  countries,  in  these  days  of  biblio-compression,  when  small 
pages  and  small  type  are  used  to  acconmiodate  the  pur^e  at  the  expense  of 
the  eyes.  But  Iiere  we  have  a  noble  specimen  of  typography ;  a  generous 
page,  an  atnple  margin,  a  clear,  large  type,  double  coluirins,  the  first  glance 
at  which  charms  the  eye.  and  invites  cln.se  attention  to  the  merits  of  the 
book.  When  we  have  taken  up  the  volumes,  we  have  laid  them  down 
again  with  reluctance,  and  only  as  constrained  by  necessity.  They  are 
rich;  replete  with  instructive  facts  and  striking  incidents,  that  wil!  not 
fail  to  leave  those  impressions  on  the  reader's  mind,  which  a  '  good  man  ' 
loves  to  cherish,  and  with  which  it  must  be  the  joy  of  his  heart  to  live, 
and  the  delight  of  his  soul  to  die.  But  it  is  not  a  mere  repository  of  anec- 
dotes; it  is  a  continuous  and  well-digested  history,  in  the  main,  of  all  the 
operations  of  the  several  missionary  societies  in  the  world,  from  their 
commencement,  about  1730,  to  the  present  time." — Boston  Recorder. 
2.3 


THE  GREAT  COMMISSION. 

Or  the  Christian  Church  constituted  and  charged  to  convey  the  Gospel  to 

the  World.    By  Rev.  John  Harris,  D.  D.,  author  ol  '  Mammon,' 

'Great  Teacher,'  &c.    With  an  Introductory  Essay,  by 

Wm.  R.  Williams,  D.  D.,  of  New  York. 

Fourth  Thousand. 

Oi^Thiswork  was  written  in  consequence  of  the  offer  of  a  prize  of  two 
hundred  guineas,  by  several  prominent  individuals  in  Scotland,  for  the 
best  essay  on  "The  duty,  privilege,  and  encouragement  of  Christians 
to  send  the  gospel  of  salvation  to  the  unenlightened  nations  of  the 
earth."  The  adjudicators  (David  Welsh,  Ralph  Wardlaw,  Henry  Mel- 
ville, Jabez  Bunting,  Thomas  S.  Crisp)  state  "  that /&r/j/-/tfo  essays 
were  reeeived,  and,  after  much  deliberation,  the  essay  of  Dr.  Harris  was 
placed  Jirst.  They  were  influenced  in  their  decision  by  the  sentiment, 
style,  and  comprehensiveness  of  the  essay,  ana  by  the  general  adaptation 
to  the  avowed  object  of  the  prize." 

r3~Thi3  work  has  received  the  highest  commendation. 


MEMOIR  OF  ANN  H.  JUDSON, 

Late  Missionary  to  Burmah,  including  a  history  of  the  American  Baptist 

Mission  in  the  Burman  Empire.    By  Rev.  James  D.  Knowles. 

A  new  edition.     With  a  continuation  of  the  History 

down  to  the  present  year. 

"  We  are  particularly  gratified  to  perceive  a  new  edition  of  the  Me- 
moirs  of  Mrs.  Judson.  She  was  an  honor  to  our  country— one  of  the 
most  noble  spirited  of  her  sex.  It  cannot,  therefore,  be  surprising,  that 
so  many  editions,  and  so  many  thousand  copies  of  her  life  and  adven- 
tures have  been  sold.  The  name — the  long  career  of  suffering — the  self- 
sacrificing  spirit  of  the  retired  country-girl,  have  spread  over  the  whole 
world;  and  the  heroism  of  her  apostleship  and  almost  martyrdom,  stands 
out  a  living  and  heavenly  beacon  fire,  amid  the  dark  midnight  of  ages, 
and  human  history  and  exploits.  She  was  tlie  firsl  iroman  who  resolved 
to  become  a  missionary  to  heathen  countries."  — American  Traveller. 

"  This  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  pieces  of  female  biography  which 
has  ever  come  uuder  our  notice.  No  quotation,  which  our  limits  allow, 
would  do  justice  lo  the  facts,  and  we  must  therefore  refer  our  readers  to 
the  volume  itself.  It  ought  to  be  immediately  added  to  every  family 
library." — London  Miscellany. 


MEMOIR  OF  WM.  CAREY,  D.  D. 

Forty  Years  a  Missionary  in  India.    By  Ei:stace  Carey.    With  an 

Introductory  Essay,  by  Francis  Wayland,  D.  D. 

With  a  Likeness. 

|l3=-During  the  forty  years  which  Ttr.  Carey  labored  in  the  missionary 
cause,  lie  was  instrumental  in  the  publication  of  212,000  volumes  of  the 
Scriptures  in  forty  different  languages,  embracing  the  vernacular  tongues 
of  at  least  27,000,000  of  the  human  race,  besides  performing  other  labors, 
the  enumeration  of  which  would  seem  almost  incredible. 
24 


MEMOIR  OF 

GEORGE  DANA   BOARDMAN. 

Late  Missionary  to  Burmah,  containing  much  intelligence  relative  to 

the  Burman  Mission.     By  Rev.  Alonzo  Kino.     A  New  Edition. 

Willi  an  Introductory  Essay,  by  a  distinguished  Clergyman. 

Embellished  with  a  Likeness;  a  beautiful  Vignette, 

representing  the  baptismal  scene  just  before 

his  death;  and  a  drawing  of  his  Tomb, 

taken  by  Rev.  H.  Malcom. 

jTS^In  noticing  the  lamented  death  of  Mr.  Boardman,  Mr.  Judson,  in 
one  of  his  letters,  thus  speaks  of  his  late  worthy  co-worker  on  the  field 
of  Burmah:  "Oneof  the  brightest  luminariesof  Burmah  is  extinguished, 
—dear  brother  Boardman  is  gone  to  his  eternal  rest.  He  fell  gloriously  at 
the  head  of  liis  troops,  in  the  arms  of  victory, — thirty-eight  wild  Karens 
having  been  brought  into  the  camp  of  king  Jesus  since  the  beginning  of 
the  year,  besides  the  thirty-two  that  were  brought  in  during  the  two 
preceding  years.  Disabled  by  wounds,  he  was  obliged,  through  the  whole 
last  expedition,  to  be  carried  on  a  litter;  but  his  presence  was  a  host, 
and  the  Holy  Spirit  accompanied  his  dying  whispers  with  almighty  in- 
fluence. Such  a  death,  next  to  that  of  martyrdom,  must  be  glorious  in 
the  eyes  of  heaven.  Well  may  he  rest,  assured,  that  a  triumphal  crown 
awaits  him  on  the  grt^at  day,  and  '  Well  done,  good  and  faithful  Board- 
man,  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord.'" 

From  Rev.  Baron  Stoto. 

"No  one  can  read  the  Memoir  of  Boardman,  without  feeling  that  the 
religion  of  Christ  is  suited  to  purify  the  affections,  exalt  the  purposes, and 
give  energy  to  the  character.  Mr  Boardman  wasa'man  of  rare  excellence, 
and  his  biographer,  by  a  just  exhibition  of  that  excellence,  has  rendered 
an  important  service,  not  only  to  ihe  cause  of  Christian  missions,  but  to 
the  interest  of  persona]  godliness.  Bakon  Stow." 

"  The  author  had  a  fine  opportunity  for  making  an  interesting  book;  and 
in  the  execution  he  has  done  ample  justice,  alike  to  himself  and  to  his  in- 
teresting suliject.  This  memoir  belongs  to  that  class  of  books,  which  may 
be  read  with  interest  and  profit  by  every  one.  It  comprises  so  much  of 
interesting  history,  so  much  of  simple  and  pathetic  narrative,  so  true  to 
nature,  and  so  much  of  correct  moral  and  religious  sentiment,  lliat  it  can- 
not fail  to  interest  persons  of  all  ages  and  of  every  variety  of  taste.  It 
should  have  a  place  in  every  family  library,  and  especially  in  all  Sabbath 
school  libraries." — Christian  WuLchman. 


MALCOM'S  TRAVELS  IN  SOUTH-EASTERN  ASIA, 

Embracing  Hindustan,  Malaya, Siam,  and  China;  with  notices  of  numerous 

missionary  stations;  and  a  full  account  of  the  Burman  Empire; 

with  Dissertations,  Tables,  &c.     In  two  volumes, 

beautifully  illustrated.     Sixth  edition. 

By  Rev.  Howard  Malcom. 

tl3°"The  work  has  received  the  highest  commendation  from  the  press; 
and  the  best  proof  of  the  estimation  in  which  it  is  regarded,  is  in  the  un- 
exampled sale  of  i  he  work.  Near  four  thousand  copies  were  sold  within 
one  year  from  its  first  appearance.  In  its  mechanical  execution  it  sur- 
any  .similar  work  ever  attempted  in  this  country. 
3  25 


THE  KAREN  APOSTLE; 

Or,  Memoir  of  Ko  Thah-Byu,  the  first  Karen  convert,  with  notices 

concerning  his  Nation.    With  maps  and  plates.    By  the 

Rev.  Francis  Mason,  Missionary.    American 

edition.    Edited  by  Prof.  H.  J.  Ripley, 

'  of  Newton  Theol.  Institution. 

Second  Thousand. 

Jl3~  This  is  a  work  of  thrilling  interest,  containing  the  history  of  a 
remarkable  man,  and  giving,  also,  much  information  respecting  the 
Karen  Mission,  heretofore  unknown  in  this  country.  It  must  be  sought 
for,  and  read  with  avidity  by  those  interested  in  this  most  interesting 
Mission.  It  gives  an  account,  which  must  l)e  attractive  from  its  novel- 
ty, of  a  people  that  have  been  but  little  known  and  visited  by  mission- 
aries, till  within  a  few  years.  The  baptism  of  Ko-Thah  Byu,  in  1828, 
was  the  beginning  of  the  mission,  and  at  the  end  of  these  twelve  years, 
twelve  hundred  and  seventy  Karens  are  officially  reported  as  members  of 
the  churches,  in  good  standing.  The  mission  has  been  carried  on  pre- 
eminently by  the  Karens  themselves,  and  there  is  no  doubt,  from  much 
touching  evidence  contained  in  this  volume,  that  they  are  a  people  pe- 
culiarly susceptible  to  religious  impressions.  The  account  of  Mr.  Mason 
must  be  interesting  to  every  one. 

"Perhaps  no  nation,  recently  discovered,  has  attracted  or  deserved  more 
general  interest  than  the  Karen.  All  will  be  delighted  to  read  the  memoir 
of  one,  who  united  with  the  common  characteristics  of  his  countrymen 
such  an  extraordinary  degree  of  zeal.  Hf  perseverance,  and  success,  in  the 
propagation  of  tiie  gospel  which  he  himself  first  received  in  faith  and  in 
love." — Baptist  Advocate. 

"It  is  a  valuable  addition  to  the  volumes  now  multiplying,  which  bear 
testimony  to  the  valuable  character  and  results  of  the  missionary  work." 
— Christian  Intelligencer. 

"This  work  will  be  read  with  interest,  showing,  as  it  does,  the  power  of 
the  gospel  upon  a  degraded  people,  and  the  rich  blessings  it  confers  upon 
the  heathen,  both  as  it  respects  this  life  and  the  life  to  come.  What  can 
be  more  interesting  to  a  Christian  mind,  than  to  see  the  darkness  which, 
by  nature,  bnods  over  the  human  mind,  dispelled  by  the  light  of  the 
gospel,  and  a  benighted  spirit  guided  to  a  world  of  eternal  day.  A  strik- 
ing instance  of  this,  the  memoir  presents.  It  also  shows  how  the  go.-pel 
can  raise  up  an  individual  from  the  depths  of  wretchedness  and  crime, 
and  make  him,  though  possessed  of  small  natural  abilities,  a  rich  blessing 
to  his  fellow-men."— Fermonf  Chronicle. 

"It  is  an  interesting  little  volume,  and  gives  a  vivid  picture  of  the 
influence  of  the  ChrislTan  religion  in  taming,  subduing,  and  elevating  a 
rough  and  darkened  mind.  The  historical  notices  ol  the  Karen  people  we 
have  read  with  pleasure."— .Baw^or  Courier. 

"This  volume  abounds  in  that  kind  of  interest  which  belongs  to  per- 
sonal n  irraiive;  and  the  effect  of  good  teaching  upon  'new  minds,'  is  ad- 
mirably illustrated."— PAz7arfe/p/iia  U.  S.  Ga-ette. 
26 


"A  CHURCH  WITHOUT  A  BISHOP." 

APOSTOLICAL  AND  PRIMITIVE  CHURCH; 

Popular  ill  its  Form  of  Govenimenl,  and  Simple  in  its  Mode  of 

Worship.     By  Lyman  Coleman,  of  Andover,  Author  of 

"  Christian  Antiquities."    With  an  Introductory 

Essay,  by  Dr.  Augustus  Neander, 

Berlin,  Germany.     1  vol.  12mo. 

CC5°"  An  important  and  very  interesting  work.    Just  published. 


ANTIOCH; 


OR,  INCREASE  OF  MORAL  POWER  IN  THE  CHURCH  OF  CHRIST. 

By  Rev.  P.  Church.    With  an  Introductory 

Essay,  by  Rev.  Baron  Stow. 

"Here  is  a  volume  which  will  make  a  greater  stir  than  any  didactic 
work  that  has  been  issued  for  many  a  day.  It  is  a  book  of  close  and  con- 
secutive thought,  and  treats  of  subjects  which  are  of  the  deepest  inter- 
est, at  the  present  time,  to  tiie  churches  of  this  country.  The  author  is 
favorably  known  to  the  religious  public,  as  an  original  thinker,  and  a 
forcible  writer, — his  style  is  lucid  and  vigorous.  The  Introduction,  by 
Mr.Stow,  adds  much  to  the  value  and  attractions  of  the  volume." — Chr. 
Rejlector. 

'•  By  sohie  this  book  will  be  condemned,  by  many  it  will  be  read  with 
pleasure,  because  it  analyzes  and  renders  tangible,  principles  that  have 
been  vaguely  conceived  in  many  minds,  reluctantly  promulgated  and  hesi- 
tatingly believed.  W.e  advise  our  brethren  to  read  the  book,  and  judge 
for  themselves." — Baptist  Record. 

"It  is  the  work  of  an  original  thinker,  on  a  subject  of  great  practical 
interest  to  the  church.  It  is  replete  with  suggestions,  which,  in  our 
view,  are  eminently  worthy  of  consideration."— P/i27.  Chr.  Observer. 

"This  is  a  philosophical  essay,  denoting  depth  of  thinking,  and  great 
originality.  *  *  *  He  does  not  doubt,  but  asserts,  and  carries  along  the 
matter  with  his  argument,  until  the  difference  of  opinion  with  which  the 
reader  started  with  the  writer  is  forgotten  by  the  former,  in  admiration  of 
the  warmth  and  truthfulness  of  the  latter."— PAj7.  U.  S.  Gazette. 


PENTECOST. 

OR,  THE  SOLE  EFFICIENCY  OF  CONVERTING  THE  WORLD. 
By  Rev.  P.  Church,  author  of  "Antioch." 

Contents — Evangelical  Enterprise — Scale  on  which  to  graduate  Man's 
Efficiency  in  it.  Part  1.  Nature  of  the  Energy  which  the  Believer  is  to 
expect  from  Christ  Part  2.  The  Forms  under  which  this  Heavenly  En- 
ergy manifests  itself.  Part  3.  Means  ef  securing  enlarged  Measures  of 
this  Energy  upon  ourselves. 

"One  desire  in  the  writer  predominates  overall  others;  that  Christians, 
generally,  may  rise  to  a  just  appreciation  of  the  unspeakable  blessings 
treasured  up  for  them  in  Christ;  that  all  men  may  see  the  riches  of  Iho 
glory  of  his  inheritance  in  the  saints." 
S7 


CHURCH  discipline; 

The  Scripture  Doctrine  of  Church  Order  and  Government. 

By  Rev.  Warham  Walker,  Homer,  N.  Y. 

One  volume.     ISmo.     Cloth. 

D3"  A.  timely  and  very  useful  tcork. 

Co«/enfs— Introduction.— Church,  definition  of  the  term— Constitu- 
tion of  the  Churches— Fir.st  Christian  Churcli,  in  its  incipient  Slate — 
The  Church  at  Jerusalem— The  Church  at  Antloch— Organization  of  the 
Churches— Government  of  the  Churches— The  True  Idea  of  Church  Disci- 
pline. Part  I.  Formative  Church  Discipline. — Terms  of  Church  Mem- 
bership—Importance and  necessity  of  Maintaining  Formativo  Discipline 
— Formative  Measures.  Part  2  Corrective  Church  Discipline — Power 
of  the  Churches  to  Maintain  Corrective  Discipline— Limitations  of  tiie 
Power  of  Discipline — Obligation  of  the  Churche.s  to  Maintain  Corrective 
Discipline— Objects  of  Corrective  Discipline— Spirit  in  which  Corrective 
Discipline  should  be  conducted — The  Law  of  Corrective  Discipline — 
O.fjnces  deminilin?  Corrective  Discipline — The  Process  of  Corrective 
Discipline— The  First  Admonition— The  Second  Admonition— The  Final 
Act  of  Discipline— Treatment  of  the  E.KCommunicated — Restoration  of  the 
Penitent— Conclusion. 

The  following-  recommendatory  notes  from  individuals  residing  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  Author,  were  received  by  the  Publishers  with  the  manu- 
sc?-ipt  of  the  work. 

From  the  Professors  in  Hamilton  Literary  and  Theol.  Institution. 

"We  have  carefully  perused  the  most  important  parts  of  the  manu- 
script, and  the  result  has  been  highly  gratifymg.  The  work  is  charac- 
terized by  great  sobriety  and  caution.  We  belieVe  the  views  it  presents 
to  be  scriptural;  and  that  where  they  are  not  supported  by  the  direct  and 
and  positive  declaration  of  the  word  of  God,  they  are,  at  least,  sustained 
by  the  general  spirit  of  the  teachings  of  Christ  and  his  apostles.  Such  a 
work  as  this,  we  think,  is  greatly  needed;  it  is  well  adapted  to  promote 
correct  views  and  uniformity  of  practice  in  relation  to  the  subject  of 
which  it  treats.  We  cordially  recommend  it  to  the  careful  perusal  of  the 
members  of  our  churches.  J.  S.  Maginnis, 

Hamilton,  Nov.  6,  1843.  T.  J.  Con  ant, 

A.  C.  Kendrick." 

From  the  Editor  of  the  N.  Y.  Baptist  Register. 
"I  have  just  had  the  privilege  of  hearing  the  principal  part  of  Professor 
Warham  Walker's  work  on  Church  Discipline.  The  subject  is  presented 
in  a  clear  and  beautiful  style,  and  in  accordance  wHh  the  sacred  oracles; 
and  the  instruction  conveyed  is  much  needed  at  the  present  time,  when 
young  converts  are  so  numerous  and  so  imperfectly  acquainted  with  duty 
in  this  matter,  and  with  the  proper  manner  of  discharging  it.  The  author 
is  well  known  in  this  State,  as  a  writer  of  great  force  and  elegance,  and 
any  thing  he  undertakes  is  done  with  fidelity  and  eflfect. 

Utica,  Nov.  7,  1S43.  Yours,  truly,        A.  M.  Beebee." 

"  We  are  truly  gratified  at  the  issue  of  this  publication.  A  work  of  this 
kind  has  been  greatly  needed  in  our  churches,  and  its  appearance  will  be 
warmly  welcomed,  we  believe,  by  thousands.  The  subject  is  one  involv- 
ing many  difficult  and  debiteable  questions,  and  it  will  be  strange  imieed 
if  it  satisfies  all  pirties.  in  the  cfecuiion,  equally  well.  But  from  looking 
at  the  general  plan,  and  reading  several  pages,  we  are  inclined  to  believe 
that  it  will  meet  vvilh  great  favor.  The  work  originated  in  an  essay  read 
at  a  .Ministerial  Conference,  and  was  completed  and  published  by  the  re- 
quest of  the  brethren  composing  that  conference.  It  is  issued  in  a  neat 
style;— a  volume  of  one  hundred  and  fifty -six  pages,"— C/ir.  Rejlector. 
23 


THE   PSALMIST: 

A  NEW  COLLECTION  OF   HYMNS  FOR  THE   USE   OF 
THE  BAPTIST  CHURCHES. 

BY    BARON     STOW    AND    S.   F.   SMITH. 

This  work  contains  nearly  twelve  hundred  Hymns,  original  and  select' 
ed,  togellier  with  a  colleclion  of  Chants  and  Selections  for  Chanting. 

Surprising  as  ii  may  appear  to  those  who  are  aware  of  the  great  diversity 
of  opinion  and  tastes  every  where  existing  in  reference  to  h>mns  best 
suited  to  public  worship,  this  new  collection  meets  with  almost  universal 
favor.  Its  rapid  introduction  into  churches  in  various  parts  of  the  coun- 
try; the  numerous  testimonials  of  approval  and  high  commendation  daily 
received,  in  connection  with  the  acl^nowledged  ability  of  the  editors;  the 
uncommon  iacilities  enjoyed  by  them,  of  drawing  from  the  bcbt  sources  in 
this  and  other  countries;  the  great  care  with  which  the  compilation  has  been 
made;  the  new,  convenient,  and  systematic  plan  of  arrangement  adopted, 
give  the  publishers  full  confidence  in  the  superior  merits  of  the  work. 

In  addition  to  the  protracted  labor  of  the  editors,  the  proof-sheets  have 
all  been  submitted  to  a  Committee,  composed  of  clergymen  of  high  stand- 
ing, in  different  parts  of  the  Union,  by  whose  critical  examinations  and 
important  suggestions  the  value  of  the  work  has  been  greatly  enhanced. 

All  of  Watls's  Hymns,  possessing  lyrical  spirit,  and  suited  to  the  wor- 
ship of  a  Christian  assembly,  are  inserted;  and  a  large  number  of  hymna 
heretofore  unknown  in  this  country  have  been  introduced.    The  distinc- 
tion of  psalms  and  hymns,  usually  made  in  other  collections,  has  been 
avoided  in  this,  and  all  have  been  arranged  together,  under  their  appro- 
priate heads,  and  numbered  in  regular,  unbroken  succession.     There  are 
four  valuable  Indexes. — a  'General  Ir^dex'  of  subjects,  a  'Particular  In- 
dex,' an  '  Index  of  First  Lines,'  and  an  extended  'Scripture  Index.' 
Notice  of  the  Am.  Bap.  Publication  and  S.  S.  Society,  Philadelphia. 
The  Board  of  Directors  of  the  A.  B.  P.  and  S.  S.  Society,  induced  by  the 
numerous  and  urgent  calls  which,  for  along  lime,  have  been  made  from 
various  sections  of  the  country,  for  a  new  colleciion  of  Hymns  that  should 
be  adapted  to  the  wants  of  the  churches  generally,  resolved,  in  the  year 
1841,  to  take  immediate  measures  for  the  accomplishment  of  this  object. 
With  this  view,  a  committee,  consisting  of  Rev.  W.  T.  Branlly.  D.  D.,  of 
South  Carolina,  Rev.  J.  L.  Dagg,  of  Alabama,  Rev.  R  B.  C.  Howell,  of 
Tennessee,  Rev.  S  W.  Lynd,  D.  D..  of  Ohio,  Rev.  J.  B.  Taylor,  of  Virginia, 
Rev.  S.  P.Hill,  of  Maryland,  Rev.  G.  B.  Ide  and  R.  W.Griswold,  of  Penn- 
sylvania, and  Rev.  W.  R.  Williams,  D.  D.,  of  New  York,  was  appointed 
to  prepare  and  superintend  the  proposed  selection.     It  was,  however,  sub- 
setpiently  ascertained  that  a  similar  work  had  been  undertaken  by  Blessrs. 
Gould.  Kendall  &  Lincoln,  Publishers,  of  Boston;  and  that  Rev.  B.  Stow 
and  Rev.  S.  F.  Smith,  whose  services  they  had  engaged,  had  already  com- 
menced their  labor.     From  the  well-known  ability  of  these  gentlemen, 
there  seemed  good  reason  to  expect  a  valuable  collection,  and  one  that 
would  fully  meet  the  end  which  the  Board  contemplated.    In  order,  there- 
fore, to  avoid  the  unnecessary  multiplication  of  Hymn  Books,  it  was 
deemed  expedient  by   the  Board  to  unite,  if  possible,  with  the  above- 
mentioned  Publishers.    Accordingly,  the  manuscript  of  Messrs.  Stow  and 
Smith  having  been  examined   and  ibund  quite  satisfactory,  arrangements 
were  made  to  have  the  proof  sheets,  as  they  were  issued  from  the  press, 
submitted  to  the  committee  of  the  Board,  with  the  understanding,  that  if, 
after  such  alterations  and  improvemeiUs  as  might  be  suggested,  it  should 
meet  their  approval,  the  Board  would  adopt  it  as  their  own.     This  ap- 
proval having  been  obtained,  the  Board  voted,  unanimously,  to  adopt  and 
publish  the  work,  and  have  negotiated  with  Gould,  Kendall  &  Lincoln,  to 
that  effect.  Signed  by  order  and  on  behalf  of  the  Board, 

J.  M.  Peck,  Ccr.  Sec.  Am.  Pub.  S.  S.  Soc. 
3*  29 


Certificate  of  the  Committee  appointed,  by  the  Am.  Baptist  Publication 

and  Sunday  School  Society. 
The  undersigned,  having  been  requested  by  the  Board  of  Directors  of 
the  Am.  Bap.  Publication  and  S.  S.  Society  to  examine  the  prooofsheets 
of ''The  Psalmist."  edited  by  Rev.  B.  Stow  ami  Rev.  S.  F.  Smitli,  and  to 
suggest  such  emendations  as  might  seem  expedient  to  render  the  work 
more  acceptable  to  the  churches  throughout  the  country,  hereby  certify, 
that  they  have  performed  the  service  assigned  them,  and  unite  in  recom- 
mending the  work  as  one  well  adapted  to  the  purpose  for  which  it  waa 
designed.  William  R.  Williams,    James  B.  Taylor, 

George  B.  Ide,  Jno.  L.  Dagg, 

RuFUs  W.  Griswold,        W,  T.  Brantly, 
Stephen  P.  Hill,  R.  B.  C.  Howell, 

Samuel  W.  Lynd. 
United  Testimony  of  Pastors  of  Bap.  Churches  in  Boston  and  vicinity, 
Messrs  Gould,  Kendall  &  Lincoln, — Permit  us  to  take  this  method 
of  expressing  our  great  satisfaction  with  the  Collection  of  Hymns  which 
you  have  of  late  published  for  the  use  of  the  Baptist  denomination.  As 
Pastors,  we  have  long  felt  the  need  of  some  book  different  from  any  which 
could  be  obtained,  and  we  have  looked  forward  with  interest  to  the  time 
when  your  proposed  work  should  be  issued  from  the  press.  The  work  is 
now  completed,  and  before  the  public;  and  from  an  attentive  and  careful 
examination  of  its  pages,  we  are  prepared  to  give  it  a  hearty  recommenda- 
tion. It  is  clear  in  its  arrangement,  sound  in  doctrine,  rich  in  senti- 
ment, sweet  and  beautiful  in  its  poetry,  and,  in  our  opinion,  most  admirably 
adapted  to  the  wants  of  the  denomination.  We  cannot  but  hope,  there- 
fore, that  it  will  soon  be  adopted  by  all  our  churches. 

Daniel  Sharp,  T.  F.  Caldicott,        Nicholas  Medbery, 

R.  W.  Cushman,        W.  H.  Shailer,         J.  W.  Parker, 
R.  H.  Neale,  H.  K.  Green,  Bradley  Miner, 

William  Hague,        Silas  B.  Randall,    J.  W.  Olmstead, 
Robert  Turnbull,    Thomas  Driver,       Joseph  Banvard, 
Nath'l  Colver,         Duncan  Dunbar,      Thos.  D.  Anderson. 
From  the  Professors  in  Neicton  Theological  Institution. 
Union  of  judgment  in  regard  to  all  the  principles  which  should  regulate 
the  preparatiorTof  a  HymnBook,  both  as  to  the  character  of  the  hymns, 
and  as  to  the  omission  and  alterations  in  the  case  of  selected  hymns  that 
have  long  been  in  use,  is  not  to  be  expected.     We  are  free,  however,  to 
say,  that  in  copiousness  of  subject,  in  adaptation  to  the  various  occasions 
of  worship,  in  devout  and  poetic  character,  and  in  general  excellence,  we 
regard  the  work  as  eminently  superior  to  collections  now  in  common  use. 
Barnas  Sears,  Pres.  and  Prof.  Christian  Theology. 
Irah  Chase,  Prof.  Ecclesiastical  History. 
H.  J.  Ripley,  Prof  .  Sacred  Rhetoric  and  Pastoral  Duties. 
H.  B.  Hackett,  Prof  .Bib.  Literature  and  Interpretation, 
Testimony  of  a  Committee  of  the  Faculty  of  Hamilton  Literary  and 
Theological  Institvtion. 
Mes.?rs.  Gould,  Kendall  &  Lincoln,— The  undersigned  have  been  ap- 

Eointed,  by  ilie  Faculty  of  our  Institution  a  Committee  to  examine  the 
[ymn  Book,  entitled  ''The  Psalmist,"  recently  published  by  you,  and 
edited  by  Rev.  B.  Stow  and  Rev.  S.  F.  Smith.    It  gives  us  pleasure  to 
state,  as  the  result  of  our  examination,  that  we  consider  the  work  decided- 
ly superior  to  any  similar  collection  with  which  we  are  acquainted.     Its 
materials  are  drawn  from  the  best  sources  of  sacred  lyrical  poetry  in  our 
language  ;  the  arrangement  is  eminently  happy;  and  the  variety  of  its  se- 
lections  adapts  it  to  almost  every  occasion.     We  think  the  adoption  of 
the  work  in  the  Baptist  churches  of  our  country  would  be  calculated  greatly 
to  elevate  that  interesting  branch  of  worship  with  reference  to  which  it  ia 
prepared.        A.  C.  Kendrick,  Prof.  Greek  Lan.  atid  Literature. 
J.  S.  ]Maginnis.  Prof.  Biblical  Theology. 
T.  J.  CoNANT,  Prof  Heb.  Sf  Bib.  Crit.  ^  Interpretation. 
J.  H.Raymond,  Tut.Intel.^ Mor.Philos.^ Belles-lettres. 
30 


United  Testimony  of  the  Pastors  of  Baptist  Churches  in  Philadelphia 
and  vicinity 
"We,  the  undersignerl,  Pastors  of  the  Baptist  Churches  in  the  city  of 
Philadelphia,  and  its  vicinity,  having  exannned  'Tlie  Psalmist,"  a  new- 
Hymn  Book  for  the  use  of  the  Baptist  Churches,  edited  by  Kev.  Messrs. 
B.  ^^tow  and  S.  F.  Smith,  published  by  the  Am.  Bap.  Pub.  S.  S.  Society, 
and  Gould,  Kendall  &  Lincoln,  Boston,  most  cordially  express  our  con- 
viction tiiat  it  is  decidedly  superior  to  any  other  Hymn  Book  with  which 
we  are  acquainted.  In  arrangement,  it  is  very  natural ;  in  doctrine,  it  is 
sound  and  peculiarly  evangelical;  in  its  selection  of  hymns  upon  every 
important  subject,  it  is  very  copious  and  judicious;  while  there  is  ava- 
riety  that  characterizes  no  other.  Its  lyrical  excellence  places  it  far 
above  all  other  compilations,  and  makes  it  a  delightful  companion  for  the 
Christian,  in  private  and  domestic,  as  well  as  public  worship.  We  shall 
regard  that  as  a  happy  era  in  the  churches  of  our  denomination,  when  it 
shall  be  universally  adopted  by  them. 

George  B.  Ide,  Horatio  G.  Jone.s, 

Ji  Lansing  Burrows,    Thos.  O.  Lincoln, 
A.  D.  Gillette,  F.  Ketcham. 

RECOMMENDATIONS    OF   ASSOCIATIONS    AND    CONVENTIONS. 

Boston  Baptist  Association,  1845. 

Whereas,  for  some  time  past,  v^^e  have  felt  the  need  of  a  new 
collection  of  hymns,  for  the  use  of  our  churches  in  their  public 
worship ;  and  whereas,  the  new  work  entitled  '  The  Psalmist/ 
edited  by  two  brethren  connected  with  this  body,  supplies  this 
need,  and  answers  admirably  the  end  for  which  it  was  designed, 
therefore  Resolved,  That  in  our  opinion,  The  Psalmist  is  worthy  the 
patronage  of  the  Baptist  denomination,  and  we  cordially  recom- 
mend its  adoption  in  all  our  churches. 

Miami  {Ohio),  Baptist  Association,  1843. 

The  Committee  appointed  to  report  upon  a  Hymn  Book,  have 
attended  to  the  duty  assigned  them,  and  report  the  following  as 
their  views.  For  several  reasons,  the  Committee  recommend  to 
the  attention  of  the  churches,  the  new  work  called  '  The  Psalmist,' 
as  worthy  of  special  patronage.  1.  It  is  exceedingly  desirable  that 
our  whole  denomination  should  use  in  the  praises  of  the  sanctuary 
the  same  psalms,  hymns,  and  spiritual  songs.  To  secure  uniform- 
ity, we  prefer  '  The  Psalmist/  because  it  is  strictly,  and  from  the 
foundation  designed  for  the  use  of  Baptist  churches, — is  not  sur- 
passed by  any  Hymn  Book  in  the  world, — and  the  proprietorship 
is  wholly  Baptist,  by  which  the  greatest  facilities  can  be  furnished 
lor  its  introduction  to  the  churches,  and  the  perpetuity  of  its  pub- 
lication. 2.  It  has  been  prepared  with  the  greatest  care.  In  no 
instance  has  a  Hymn  Book  gone  through  so  thorough  a  revision  j 
and  the  influence  which  is  rationally  exerted  in  its  favor  by  the 
Committee  of  revision, — by  the  known  qualification  of  the  editors, 
by  the  popularity  of  the  Boston  publishers,  and  by  the  fact  that  it 
is  connected  with  the  series  of  the  Am.  Bap.  Pub.  Society, — will 
necessarily  give  it  an  ultimate  circulation  greater  than  that  of  any 
other  similar  work  in  the  churches.  3.  It  is  a  book  of  very  supe- 
rior merits,  and  probably  will  not  need  any  important  emendation 
for  a  long  period  to  come.  The  Committee  therefore  recommend 
to  the  churches  the  adoption  of  this  work  as  well  calculated  to  ele- 
vate the  taste  and  the  devotion  of  the  denomination. 

All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 

S.  W.  Lynd,  Chairman. 
31 


Philadelphia  Baptist  Association,  1843. 
Resolved,  That  we  request  the  attention  of  the  churches  to  The 
Psalmist,  a  hymn  book,  approved  by  a  large  committee  of  distin- 
guished Baptist  ministers,  in  various  parts  of  the  United  States, 

Portsmouth  {N.  H.),  Baptist  Association,  1843. 

Resolved,  That  we  highly  approve  of  The  Psalmist,  prepared  by 
Brethren  Stow  and  Smith,  and  recommend  its  adoption  in  all  our 
churches. 

Illinois  Baptist  State  Convention,  1843. 

Resolved,  That,  after  an  examination  of  the  Hymn  Book  com- 
piled by  Messrs.  Baron  Stow  and  S.  F.  Smith,  we  can  cheerfully 
recommend  it  to  the  denomination  as  being  superior  to  any  other 
work  of  the  kind  ever  before  published,  and  advise  its  adoption  and 
use  among  the  churches. 

Huron  (Ohio),  Baptist  Association,  1843. 
Among  the  resolutions  adopted,  was  one  recommending  the  new 
Hymn   Book  published  by  the  Am.  Baptist  Publication  Society, 
Philadelphia,  and  Gould,  Kendall  &  Lincoln,  Boston. 

Munroe  (N.  Y.),  Baptist  Association,  1843. 
Resolved,  That  we  recommend  to  the  several  churches  of  this 
Association,  for  their  adoption,  the  Hymn  Book  recently  prepared 
by  brethren  Baron  Stow  and  S.  F.  Smith,  called  "The  Psalmist," 
as  being  in  our  estimation  the  choicest  selection  of  hymns  extant, 
and  well  adapted  to  promote  the  objects  of  Christian  worship. 

Bethel  (Tenn.),  Baptist  Association,  1843. 
The  committee  on  Hymn  Books  reported  as  their  choice,  "The 
Psalmist."     'J'he  report  having  been  received,  the   Hymn   Book 
was  adopted,  and  recommended  to  the  churches. 

Kennebec  (Me.),  Baptist  Association,  1843. 
Voted,  That  we  recommend  to  those  churches  who  are  intend- 
ing to  supply  themselves  with  new  Hymu  Rooks,  to  purchase  '  The 
Psalmist,'  recently  prepared  by  Rev.  Baron  Stow  and  Rev.  S.  F. 
Smith  ;  this,  in  the  estimation  of  those  who  have  examined  it,  being 
the  best  Hymn  Book  in  the  English  language. 

EDITORIAL    NOTICES    AND    REVIEWS. 

From  an  extended  notice  in  the  Christian  Review. 

The  Psalmist  was  originated  under  circumstances,  and  from  a 
source,  which  give  it  a  claim  to  our  respect  and  attention.  Both 
the  editors  and  publishers  of  the  book  are  so  well  and  favorably 
known  to  the  religious  community,  that  their  motives  in  this  under- 
taking will  not  be  called  in  question.  We  hazard  little  in  saying, 
that  it  is  the  best  collection  of  hymns  ever  published  in  the  English 
language.  They  have  been  drawn  from  the  best  sources,  and 
probably,  from  a  greater  number  of  authors  than  those  in  any 
other  hymn  book  extant. 

The  Psalmist  contains  1180  hymns,  besides  doxologies  and 
chants.  Of  the  hymns,  303  are  by  Dr.  Watts,  or  about  one  quarter 
32 


of  the  whole  c-ollection.  Next  to  Watts,  are  Doddridge,  57  hymns ; 
Mrs.  Steele,  32;  Beddome,  41;  Montgomery,  33;  S.  F.  Smith,  26; 
Kelly,  17;  John  Newton,  16  ;  Charles  Wesley,  12;  Toplady,  Sten- 
nett  and  Cowper,  10  each  ;  Heber,  8 ;  CoUyer  and  He^inbotham,  7 
each  ;  Bowring,  Mrs  Barbauld,  Dwight,  Fawcett,  and  Mrs.  Sigour- 
ney,  6  each  ;  Hart,Hawes,  Needham,  and  Scott.  5  each  ;  Addison, 
Bathurst,  Fellows,  Gibbons,  Hemans,  Kippis,  Tappan,  Reed,  and 
H.  K.  White,  4  each  ;  Conder,  Edmeston,  Judson,  T.  Moore,  Noel, 
Raffles,  Swain,  and  Wrangham,  3  each ;  thirty-two  other..authors,  2 
each;  and  ninety,  1  each.  The  hymns  are  by  161  writers,  besides 
pieces  credited  to  fifty  collections  of  hymns  or  other  works,  the 
authorship  of  which  is  unknown.  Forty-five  are  anonymous,  being 
traced  neither  to  author  nor  collections. 

The  order  of  the  book  is  clear  and  natural,  a  due  respect  being 
paid  to  the  several  subjects  of  religious  worship.  We  question 
whether  it  would  be  possible  to  arrange  a  collection  of  hymns  in 
better  order.  The  numerous  objects  of  Christian  benevolence 
have  created  a  necessity  for  a  much  greater  variety  of  hymns  than 
was  formerly  needed  ;  and  of  which  no  book  in  use  furnished  the 
requisite  number.  The  Psalmist  meets  this  deficiency,  particularly 
in  hymns  upon  the  subject  of  missions,  the  number  of  which  is  76. 

The  hymns  in  The  Psalmist  are  of  convenient  length;  most  of 
them  containing  four,  and  some,  but  two  or  three  verses.  The 
preacher  using  this  book,  will  seldom  find  it  necessary  to  abridge 
a  hymn, — a  service  always  unpleasant  to  him,  and  disagreeable  to 
the  congregation.  The  variety  of  metres  is  good;  we  do  not  see 
how  it  could  be  improved. 

As  a  specimen  of  book-manufacturing,  The  Psalmist  is  deserving 
of  great  praise.  It  is  printed  with  beautiful  type,  on  clear,  white 
paper,  is  strongly  bound,  opens  easily,  and  may  be  read  with  com- 
fort, by  old  and  young.  It  would  be  not  less  gratifying  than  ad- 
vantageous for  the  churches  of  this  country,  could  they  unite  in 
adopting  the  same  hymn  book  for  public  worship. 

The  editors  have  accomplished  a  noble  work,  for  which  they 
deserve  not  only  the  thanks  of  our  own  churches,  but  of  all  lovers 
of  true  devotional  psalmody. 

From  the  Christian  Reflector,  Boston. 
We  have  before  referred  to  the  new  hymn  book,  entitled  "  The 
Psalmist."  We  have  since  given  it  a  more  careful  examination, 
and  we  cannot  withhold  from  it  our  unqualified  praise.  Winchell's 
Watts  has  a  great  many  excellent  hymns,  and  will,  doubtless,  con- 
tinue to  be  used  by  many  churches  ;  but  the  volume  contains  many 
hymns  that  cannot  be  given  out  to  be  sung,  with  any  propriety 
whatever;  and  these  are  in  the  way,  and  embarrass  a  minister  in 
making  his  selections.  We  have  other  compilations  in  use  which 
contain  many  of  the  best  hymns  extant.  The  Psalmist  surpasses 
them  all,  in  the  select  character  of  all  its  hymns.  Not  one  can  be 
regarded  as  inappropriate  to  public  worship.  The  good  old  hymns 
are  all  there,  and  many  most  beautiful  new  ones.  Those  from  the 
pen  of  S.  F.  Smith,  are  surpassingly  excellent.  The  book  is  ad- 
mirably arranged,  neatly  printed,  and  well  bound.  It  cannot  fail 
of  becoming,  sooner  or  later,  the  standard  hymn  book  of  the  de- 
nomination. It  is  to  be  introduced  into  all  parts  of  the  United 
States. 


From  the  Christian  l^atchman,  Boston. 

This  volume  impresses  us  as  being  very  complete.  The  editors 
seem  to  have  been  more  solicitous  to  make  a  good  book,  than  a 
new  book.  The  reader  will  find  that  a  majority  of  the  pieces  are 
such  as  liave  long  been  familiar  to  his  ear  in  our  devotional  assem- 
blies. We  should  have  been  sorry  to  have  founil  it  otherwise. 
The  hymns  of  Dr.  Watts  take  the  lead.  All  his  pieces  are  inserted 
which  possess  lyrical  spirit,  and  are  suited  to  a  Christian  assembly. 

We  need  say  nothing  upon  the  need  of  a  new  hymn  book.  Had 
Winchell's  Watts,  which  has  now  been  in  use  in  these  parts  near- 
ly a  quarter  of  a  century,  been  made  as  perfect  as  it  were  possible 
at  the  time  to  make  it,  we  should  at  this  period  need  a  new  book. 

From  the  Musical  Visiter,  Boston. 

"  The  Psalmist/'  a  new  collection  of  Hymns,  is  just  out,  in  a 
beautiful  style,  on  good  paper,  and  handsomely  bound.  It  has  four 
Indexes,  one  of  the  first  lines,  one  general  and  one  particular  index 
of  subjects,  and  a  Scripture  index.  Having  examined  the  book,  we 
are  satisfied  that  besides  many  more,  it  has  three  great  excellences, 
viz.,  the  hymns  are  generally  short,  having  about  four  verses,  very 
many  three,  and  about  as  many  of  two  as  of  six,  and  a  few  of  five 
verses.  Another  excellence  is,  the  variety  of  subjects,  well  adapted 
to  these  last  days.  Another  is,  the  highly  literary,  and  yet  plain 
and  beautiful  style  of  the  language.  This  is  truly  a  literary  gem, 
besides  being  a  sweet '  Psalmist '  for  the  church  of  Christ. 

From  the  Christian  Secretary,  Hartford. 

We  are  no  great  sticklers  for  changes  and  innovations  in  the 
church,  by  the  introduction  of  new  books,  new  instruments  of 
music,  &c.,  it  having  ever  been  more  congenial  to  our  taste  to 
walk  m  the  "  old  paths."  We  must  say,  that  The  Psalmist,  just 
published,  presents  claims  to  the  denomination  not  to  be  found  in 
any  other  work  of  the  kind.  There  is  one  merit  in  this  hymn  book 
which  we  are  glad  to  find,  viz,,  it  is  not  divided  into  parts,  as  in  the 
case  with  Winchell's  Watts.  Another  is,  that  the  hymns  are  of  a 
suitable  length  for  Divine  worship,  few  of  them  exceeding  six 
verses,  and  in  most  cases  not  exceeding  four. 

After  a  somewhat  careful  examination,  we  have  been  led  to  the 
conclusion,  that  this  Hymn  Book  possesses  qualities  over  every 
other  of  the  kind  that  we  are  acquainted  with,  which  entitle  it  to 
a  place  in  every  Baptist  pulpit  in  the  country. 

From  the  Religious  Herald,  Richmond,  Va. 
It  has  evidently  been  compiled  with  much  care,  and  comprises 
a  sufficient  variety  of  hymns  for  all  the  purposes  of  worship.  The 
missionary  department  is  very  full,  containing  some  original  hymns, 
and  others  which  have  not  heretofore  appeared  in  our  hymn  books. 
Throughout  the  bock,  original  compositions,  with  hymns  not  here- 
tofore met  with  in  our  selections,  and  of  modern  origin,  are  inter- 
spersed with  these  long  known  and  familiar  to  the  public.  The 
work  deserves  high  praise  for  its  purity  of  style  and  expression. 
It  has  great  and  deserved  merit,  and  as  a  whole  is  not  only  well 
adapted  to  the  object  aimed  at,  but  superior  to  its  predecessors. 
34 


From  the  New  York  Baptist  Register. 
The  Psalmist  is  one  of  the  most  delightful  and  complete  books 
of  the  kind  we  ever  had  the  privilege  of  examining.  It  is  the  very 
book  wanted.  The  poetry  is  choice  and  beautiful,  the  sentiments 
are  scriptural,  expressed  with  peculiar  felicity  and  force,  and 
adapted  to  every  variety  of  condition, — there  is  something  for 
every  body  and  every  occasion.  If  it  could  be  introduced  into 
our  churches,  they  could  want  nothing  better. 

From  the  Alabama  Baptist. 
This  work  is  intended  to  be  the  Baptist  Hymn  Book ;  and,  after  a 
careful  and  critical  examination,  we  are  fully  prepared  to  say,  that 
it  really  deserves  to  be  adopted  as  such,  by  the  denomination.  We 
think  it  decidedly  superior  to  any  collection  of  Psalms  and  Hymns 
ever  before  issued  from  the  American  press.  The  compilers, 
themselves,  are  men  of  the  purest  taste,  refined  by  familiar  con- 
verse with  the  most  elegant  writings  of  ancient  and  modern  times, 
and  sanctified  by  the  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  We  earnestly 
commend  The  Psalmist  to  the  attention  of  pastors  and  churches. 
We  believe  it  will  be  introduced  into  the  churches  throughout  the 
United  States.  The  preparation  of  this  work  may  be  regarded  as 
the  act  of  the  entire  denomination,  and  if  it  be  universally  adopted, 
will  greatly  tend  to  produce  uniformity  of  doctrine,  and  church 
order  and  discipline,  through  all  the  churches. 

From  the  Zion's  Advocate,  Portland,  J^- 
It  is  sometimes  said,  that  editors  are  induce-J  'o  commend  books 
by  the  donation  that  is  usually  made  to  th*''"  of  a  copy  of  the  work. 
But  it  cannot  be  so  in  this  case,  sin^  we  have,  by  some  means, 
failed  of  receiving  a  copy.  Yet  w<;  are  willing  to  do  the  publishers 
a  service,  and  our  readers  3  greater  service-,  by  cordially  recom- 
mendmg  this  to  those  wbo  are  purchasing  new  books  We  do  not 
know  any  other  equal  to  it. 

Prom  Graham's  Magazine,  Philadelphia. 
The  Psalmist  is,  in  our  opinion,  decidedly  the  best  compilation  of 
sacred  lyric  poetry  ever  published  in  this  country.  Its  editors  are 
distingnished  clergymen  of  the  Baptist  church,  and  one  of  them  is 
himself  a  poet  of  no  mean  reputation.  Mr.  Smith's  Missionary 
Hymn,  commencing,  "Yes,  my  native  land,  I  love  thee,"  is  nearly 
as  well  known  as  the  celebrated  lyric  of  Heber,  ■'  From  Greenland's 
icy  mountains,"  etc.,  and  a  large  number  of  his  pieces,  on  a  variety 
of  subjects,  rank  highamong  the  best  of  their  kind  in  the  language. 

From  The  Macedonian,  Boston. 
It  has  been  prepared  with  the  most  critical  regard  to  the  laws  of 
language  and  poetry,  and  to  the  wants  of  the  church  of  the  present 
age.  It  is  designed  for  use  throughout  the  United  States,  and  was 
accordingly  examined  in  the  proof-sheets,  by  gentlemen  of  known 
ability  and  scholarship,  in  different  parts  of  the  country.  We  refer 
to  it  chiefly  to  express  our  gratification  at  the  extensive  and  ad- 
mirable collection  of  missionary  hymns  which  it  contains.  One  of 
these  we  select,  entitled  "  The  Missionary  Angel,"  was  written  by 
Rev.  S.  F.  Smith. 


EXTRACT  OF  LETTERS  FROM  CLERGYMEW. 

From  Rev.  Geo.  B.  Ide,  Philadelphia. 

At  the  risk  of  appearing  intrusive,  I  have  taken  my  pen  to  let  you 
know  the  emotion  which  your  new  Hymn  Book,  in  its  beautiful 
dress,  has  excited  in  my  mind.  My  expectations  were  very  highly 
raised  ;  but  the  result  has  more  than  answered  them.  Such  another 
collection  of  hymns  for  public  worship,  so  beautiful  in  its  execution, 
so  natural,  clear,  and  perfect  in  its  arrangement,  so  varied,  copious, 
and  appropriate  in  its  list  of  subjects,  so  lyrical  in  its  structure,  so 
devotional  in  its  spirit^  so  scriptural  in  its  sentiments,  so  sweet, 
pure,  and  elevated  in  its  poetry,  I  do  not  believe  the  world  can 
furnish,  and  I  am  certain  the  English  language  cannot.  It  is  a 
■work,  in  every  respect,  of  such  surpassing  excellence,  as  to  leave 
nothing  in  its  department  to  be  desired.  All  here,  who  have  seen 
it,  are  delighted  with  it.  If  there  be  any  true  taste  in  our  churches, 
it  must  speedily  come  into  universal  use.  Our  own  denomination, 
and  the  Christian  public  generally,  are  under  great  obligations  to 
the  gifted  brethren  who  have  so  successfully  performed  their  task, 
and  to  the  liberal  and  enterprising  publishers,  by  whom  they  were 
employed.  You  will,  I  am  confident,  receive  an  ample  remunera- 
tion for  all  your  expense  and  outlay  And  I  trust,  that  both  you 
and  they  will  enjoy  the  far  higher,  richer  reward,  of  knowing  that 
through  your  united  labors,  the  public  praises  of  God  have  been 
improved,  chastened,  and  rendered  more  edifying  and  refreshing  j 
and  that,  upon  the  return  of  each  holy  Sabbath,  millions  of  saints 
on  earth  are  cnai:,ting  the  hallowed  and  inspiring  strains  with  which 
you  have  supplieo  tWni ;  and  thus  preparing  to  join  the  blissful 
choir  and  the  eternal  amV.ems  of  the  upper  sanctuary. 

Fhiladelphia,  June,  1843.  George  B.  Ide. 

From  Rev.  John  Dowling^  Providence,  R.  I. 
About  six  years  ago,  the  lamented  .5B.tnes  D.  Knowles,  at  the 
close  of  a  valuable  editorial  article  upon  Church  Psalmody,  in  the 
Christian  Review,  remarked  as  follows :  "  We  repeat  the  expression 
of  our  hope,  that  the  time  may  soon  arrive,  when  q.  compilation 
shall  be  prepared,  worthy,  in  its  sentiments  and  poetical  character, 
to  be  adopted  by  the  Baptist  denomination  throughout  this  extend- 
ed republic."  Had  this  gifted  brother  lived  to  examine  the  Psalm- 
ist, 1  cannot  doubt  that  he  would  have  agreed  wuh  the  writer  of 
these  remarks,  that  the  present  is  just  such  a  work,  and  that  that 
hope  is  completely  realized.  If  I  were  to  enumerate  the  excellences 
by  which  The  Psalmist  is  distinguished  above  every  other  hymn 
book  with  which  I  am  acquainted,  in  use  among  the  Baptist  de- 
nomination, I  should  say,  1.  There  are  no  hymns,  so  far  as  I  can 
discover,  offensive  to  a  correct  taste,  and  most  of  them  possess  a 
high  degree  of  poetic  excellence.  2.  Every  hymn  may  be  read 
■with  propriety  from  the  pulpit.  3.  All  the  hymns  are  adapted  to 
be  sung,  being  properly  lyrical  in  their  character,  and  not  historical 
or  didactic.  4.  Most  of  the  hymns  are  of  a  suitable  length  ;  the 
greater  number  consisting  of  not  more  than  four  verses.  5.  The 
unmeaning  division  into  psalms  and  hymns  is  avoided,  and  the 
numbering  of  the  hymns  is  continuous,  thus  avoiding  the  difficulty 
sometimes  experienced,  especially  by  strangers,  in  finding  the 
hymn  that  is  announced.  J.  Dowling. 


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